Bahamas’ Ministry of Health plans to breast cancer programs.

Namita Nayyar (WF Team)

11 years ago

Bahamas’ Ministry of Health plans to breast cancer programs.

– Reported, January 23, 2013

The breast cancer agenda will include establishing a recommendation for the minimum age for breast cancer screening guidelines by January 2013; initiating provider education, including integrating breast cancer curriculum into Continuing Medical Education certification and incorporating breast cancer language into the Medical and Nursing Acts; implementing public education with assistance from Susan G. Komen; and reviewing the use of current mammography machines to ensure they are operating at full capacity.

The role of the Breast Cancer Planning Committee will be to help coordinate the efforts of the many individual organizations and groups already working to fight breast cancer in The Bahamas and assist the Ministry of Health in developing a national breast cancer policy and agenda.

Groundbreaking research, made possible by a Komen grant to Dr. Judith Hurley, M.D., of the University Of Miami School Of Medicine, has led to the discovery that 23% of the Bahamian women diagnosed with breast cancer carry the BRCA1 gene mutation. The BRCA1 mutation is one of the most well-known genes linked to breast cancer risk, and is thought to explain a large portion of hereditary breast cancers, which occur in the Bahamas.

As part of Komen’s efforts to support the government’s breast cancer agenda, on Wednesday Komen awarded a $50,000 grant made possible by three-time and ten-year breast cancer survivor Tina Lewis in support of a local NGO breast cancer consortium aimed at strengthening breast cancer provider and public education services as well as technical assistance.

In the Bahamas, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women, with health officials estimating 300-500 new cases annually. Some 23 percent of Bahamian women diagnosed with breast cancer carry the BRCA1 gene mutation, which puts a woman at greater risk for breast cancer. Nearly half of the Bahamian women diagnosed with breast cancer are under age 50, and nearly half of those are diagnosed at stage 3 of the disease. Studies also show that an alarming 43 percent of the women who succumb to the deadly disease are under age 50 at the time of death. Since 2009, Komen has worked with its strategic partner, Sunshine Insurance Marathon Bahamas, local government and non-government agencies to help end suffering from the disease in the islands.

This expanded partnership with the Bahamas is part of Komen’s growing international presence in the fight against women’s cancers. To date, millions of dollars has been invested in research and public health programs in more than 30 countries outside the United States through the funding of grants, program collaboration and the Race for the Cure series.

CREDITS:
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