Breast cancer is one of the four most prominent non-communicable diseases, continues to be the most common type of ailment amount women. The last Health Ministry report, which grave statistics up to 2007, said 29 out of every 100,000 Malaysian women had breast cancer.
As part of the Phillps multi-year global Breast Cancer Awareness campaign, Royal Phillips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is partnering with the National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM) to raise awareness and educated communities about breast cancer.
The Best Breast Cancer Screening and Awareness Competition will also focus on prevention through lifestyle modifications and will involve the underprivileged and/or inaccessible communities in the awareness program.
NCDs are the biggest causes of death worldwide, causing over 36 million deaths in 2008. As observed, Malaysia is beginning to observe an epidemiological shift from communicable diseases to those related to lifestyle, particularly cancers and cardiovascular diseases. Over the past two decades, there has been a steady increase int he number of deaths attributable to cancer among its population, and approximately 30,000 new cancer cases occur each year. Phillips and NSCM recognize the scale of the challenge. Most recently, Phillips’ inaugural ASEAN Healthcare Consumtation brought together policymakers, patient groups, academics and healthy providers in Malaysia to collaborate and find answers to key modern-day healthcare challengers in an aligned, international and sustained approach and take a holistic view of the challenges posed by NCD’s.
In a recent study by the World Health Organisation, the recommended early detection strategies for low and middle-income countries are awareness of early signs and symptoms and screening by clinical breast examination in demonstration areas. In a community-based survey conducted by the Ministry of Health Malaysia among 59,903 women in Malaysia, only 34% and 31% of women above 20 years of age performed self-examination and clinical breast examination respectively. On the other hand, only 3.8% of women aged 50 years and older had mammograms.
Phillips and NCS are now calling upon NGO’s, government hospitals and/or institutions to submit proposals for new, innovative breast cancer screening awareness in Malaysia. Dr Saunthari Somasundaram, President and Medical Director of NSCM says, “This initiative gives the community the opportunity to join the fight and make a difference. It allows breast cancer awareness and control issues to be raised from common ground by from different perspectives”.
For more information on the Best Breast Cancer Screening and Awareness Competition, organizations and individuals, please contact coordinating agency Fleishman-Hilllard at 03-2094 0760.
All submissions need to reach Fleishman-Hilllard by 13 March 2013.
