Dowa men urged to join breast, cervical cancer fight

Men in Dowa District have been urged to take a leading role in ensuring that their wives go for early cancer detection diagnoses.

Acting head of non-communicable diseases in the Ministry of Health Jones Masiye said this at Chezi Trading Centre in Traditional Authority (T/A) Nkukula in the district during an awareness campaign Think Pink Malawi organised.

“Women are our wives and we need to love them. Check their breasts if they have bean seed-like lumps which could be cancer in its early and treatable stage,” he said.

Masiye pointed out that breast and cervical cancer are among the leading killer diseases to women, with Malawi ranking first in cervical cancer deaths in the Sub-Saharan region.

Think Pink Malawi was started in 2014 by former Miss Malawi and breast cancer survivor Blandina Khondowe who got inspired by the pain she went through during the time. She also lost a breast.

“My major concern is that women, especially those in rural areas, cannot afford to go abroad for treatment. But this can be avoided if it is detected early as it can be treated locally,” said Khondowe.

Over 521 women have since gone through early cancer testing, with those diagnosed with cancer receiving treatment.

Think Pink Malawi is an initiative on a crusade to achieve the lowest number of breast and cervical cancer deaths by advocating early detection and diagnosis. n