‘Stigma and taboo attached with breast cancer should be removed’,Dr Lopamudra Das Roy

Our Correspondent

TINSUKIA, July 19: “Stigma and taboo attached with breast cancer are the main reasons for lower incidence of breast cancer survival among women in India. The incidence of breast cancer is increasing alarmingly in Northeast India,” said Dr Lopamudra Das Roy in an interactive programme in Tinsukia on Wednesday. Organized by IMA Tinsukia branch, Dr Das Roy, a former scholar of Assam University and post-doctoral fellow on breast and pancreatic cancer immunology from Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, USA, in her two sessions discussed awareness issues in developed and developing countries.

Emphasizing the case stories from Assam, she said though in USA the occurrence of breast cancer was as high as in India, the mortality rate had been consistently higher in India, adding that early detection could help cure breast cancer. Unlike USA, the women in India feel shy even to disclose to her near relatives and avoid physicians for consultation for stigma and taboo even as self-examination is one of the methods to detect any abnormality in breast in the earlier stages of cancer. It is unfortunate that most of the affected Indian women report to hospitals at the fourth stage when chances of survival are poor, she said. Extensive awareness programme can accelerate survival potentialities, she added.

The programme was chaired by Dr Mohan Shyam Konwar, president of IMA, and anchored by Dr Prashant Agarwal, secretary of IMA. Earlier, Dr Kirti Ranjan Dey introduced Dr Das Roy before the audience. Participants from Rotary Club, Lions Club, Samarprit, Marwari Yaba Manch, Ladies Club, Inner Wheel, Barnali Sishu Kalyan Sangtha and NEWEA attended the programme.