• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.16 no.15
• /
• pp.6249-6254
• /
• 2015

Targeting breast cancer awareness along with comprehensive cancer care is appropriate in low and middle income countries like India, where there are no organized and affordable screening services. It is essential to identify the existing awareness about breast cancer in the community prior to launching an organized effort. This study assessed the existing awareness about breast cancer amongst women and their health seeking practices in an urban community in Mumbai, India. A postal survey was undertaken with low or no cost options for returning the completed questionnaires. The majority of the women were aware about cancer but awareness about symptoms and signs was poor. Women were willing to accept more information about cancer and those with higher awareness scores were more likely to seek medical help. They were also more likely to have undergone breast examination in the past and less likely to use alternative medicines. High income was associated with better awareness but this did not translate into better health seeking behaviour. Organized programmes giving detailed information about breast cancer and its symptoms are needed and women from all income categories need to be encouraged for positive change towards health seeking. Further detailed studies regarding barriers to health seeking in India are necessary.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.19
• /
• pp.8115-8119
• /
• 2014

Background: Breast cancer continues to be the most common type of cancer afflicting many women worldwide. Presently, educational campaigns and research target only women as if men have no role in the management of this disease. The study examined the willingness of male partners to assist in early female breast cancer detection as well as their awareness and knowledge levels. Materials and Methods: Using a semi-structured questionnaire, data was collected from 500 public servants within the Tamale Metropolis and analyzed in SPSS. Results: The level of awareness of breast cancer was very high (98.8%) but there was a low level of knowledge of breast cancer among the male population. Marital status and religion had no effect on attitude, but increasing educational status significantly increased knowledge and positive attitude towards breast cancer examination (${\chi}^2$=4.255, p=0.0391). The majority (92.0%) agreed that men can assist in early breast cancer detection and 96.2% were willing to be provided with breast examination skills. Conclusions: Although level of awareness on female breast cancers among the men was high, they generally lack knowledge of the disease. Majority of male partners want to assist in early breast cancer detection if provided with the necessary skills.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.2247-2254
• /
• 2016

Background: The incidence of breast cancer is rising in Oman, and the disease is diagnosed at late stages, when treatment success is limited. Omani women might benefit from better awareness, so that breast cancer can be detected early and treated. This study was conducted to assess Omani women's levels of breast cancer awareness and early detection practice, and explore factors which might influence these levels. Materials and Methods: A mixed methods study was conducted in 2014, including a quantitative survey of 1,372 and a qualitative assessment of 19 Omani women, aged ${\geq}20years$ from five Omani governorates using convenient sampling. Demographic information and scores for awareness levels were used in a multivariate regression model to investigate factors associated with awareness. Thematic analysis and interpretive description were used to analyse the qualitative data. Results: The overall means for early detection and general awareness scores were 0.58 (SD 0.24) and 0.46 (SD 0.21), respectively. General awareness was significantly associated with age, education, income and familiarity with cancer patients (p<0.05), while early detection was significantly associated with age, marital status and education. A majority of women (59.5%) agreed with a belief in 'evil eye' or envy as a risk factor for breast cancer. Women discussed various factors which may empower or inhibit awareness, including the cultural-religion-fatalistic system, personal-familial-environmental system, and healthcare-political-social system. Conclusions: The overall low scores for awareness and early detection, and the survey of local beliefs highlight a severe necessity for a contextually-tailored breast cancer awareness intervention programme in Oman.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.sup3
• /
• pp.43-46
• /
• 2016

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women around the world. Information on the incidence and mortality of breast cancer is essential for planning health measures. This study aimed to investigate the incidence and mortality of breast cancer in the world using age-specific incidence and mortality rates for the year 2012 acquired from the global cancer project (GLOBOCAN 2012) as well as data about incidence and mortality of the cancer based on national reports. It was estimated that 1,671,149 new cases of breast cancer were identified and 521,907 cases of deaths due to breast cancer occurred in the world in 2012. According to GLOBOCAN, it is the most common cancer in women, accounting for 25.1% of all cancers. Breast cancer incidence in developed countries is higher, while relative mortality is greatest in less developed countries. Education of women is suggested in all countries for early detection and treatment. Plans for the control and prevention of this cancer must be a high priority for health policy makers; also, it is necessary to increase awareness of risk factors and early detection in less developed countries.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.7
• /
• pp.3651-3658
• /
• 2016

Computer-aided diagnosis of breast cancer is an important medical approach. In this research paper, we focus on combining two major methodologies, namely fuzzy base systems and the evolutionary genetic algorithms and on applying them to the Saudi Arabian breast cancer diagnosis database, to aid physicians in obtaining an early-computerized diagnosis and hence prevent the development of cancer through identification and removal or treatment of premalignant abnormalities; early detection can also improve survival and decrease mortality by detecting cancer at an early stage when treatment is more effective. Our hybrid algorithm, the genetic-fuzzy algorithm, has produced optimized systems that attain high classification performance, with simple and readily interpreted rules and with a good degree of confidence.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.14 no.8
• /
• pp.4647-4650
• /
• 2013

Background: Breast illumination was suggested as a simple method for breast cancer screening. BreastLight is a simple apparatus for this purpose. Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of BreastLight as a screening tool of breast cancer in comparison to mammography and histopathology. Materials and Methods: This hospital-based cross sectional study was conducted in the mammography unit of the radiodiagnosis department at National Cancer Institute, Cairo University. All participants were subjected to breast examination with the BreastLight tool, mammography and ultrasonography. Suspicious cases were biopsied for histopathological examination which is considered as a gold standard. Results: The mean age of the participants was $46.3{\pm}12.4$ years. Breast illumination method had sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and total accuracy of 93.0%, 73.7%, 91.4%, 77.8% and 88.2%, respectively in detection of breast cancer. Conclusions: Breast illumination method with BreastLight apparatus is a promising easy-to-use tool to screen for breast cancer suitable for primary health care physician or at-home use. It needs further evaluation especially in asymptomatic women.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.14 no.8
• /
• pp.4919-4923
• /
• 2013

Breast cancer is the top cancer in women worldwide and its incidence is increasing, particularly in developing countries. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), many cases are first diagnosed in later stages and at younger age compared to those seen in developed countries. Early detection in order to improve breast cancer outcome and survival remains the cornerstone of breast cancer control. Performance of breast self examination is one of the important steps for identifying breast disease at an early stage, by the woman herself. No information has hitherto been available about the frequency of this practice among female university students in UAE or about their breast cancer risk perception and therefore the present study was conducted in Ajman. It was found that 22.7% of the participants practiced BSE but only 3% of them practiced BSE monthly. Marital status but not age as significantly associated with age likelihood. The most frequent reported barriers for BSE were lack of knowledge, considering oneself not at risk and the absence of doctor advice. These factors need to be taken into account in intervention efforts.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.191-194
• /
• 2015

Purpose: To estimate the incidence of breast cancer in Yemeni female patients presenting with a breast mass. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was carried out with 595 female patients with palpable breast lumps, attending to Alkuwait university hospital, Sana'a, Yemen. Triple assessment, including breast examination, mammography and biopsy (FNAC, core needle, or excision), for all patients were performed. Results: The incidences of benign and malignant lesions was calculated. Some 160 (26.9%) of 595 patients had malignancies; 213 (35.8%) were fibroadenomas; 12 (2.0%) were fibrocystic change; 143 (24.03%) were inflammatory lesions (including mastitis and ductectasia); 62 (10.4%) were simple cysts, while 5 (0.8%) were phyllodes tumors. The mean age of patients with malignant lumps was 44.3 years. Conclusions: Among Yemeni female patients with palpable breast lumps, the rate of breast cancer is high, with occurrence at an earlier age than in Western countries. Improving breast cancer awareness programs and increasing breast cancer screening centers inb different areas of Yemen are needed to establish early diagnosis and offer early and optimal treatment.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.13
• /
• pp.5331-5336
• /
• 2014

Background: Early onset breast cancer is associated with poor outcomes but variable results have been reported. It is a significant problem in Pakistani women but remains under reported. Breast conservation plays an important role in surgical management of this younger patient group. The objective of this study was to determine the outcome of breast conservative therapy in patients with early onset breast cancer in our population and compare it with their older counterparts. Materials and Methods: A review of patients with invasive breast cancer who underwent breast conservation surgery at Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital from 1997 to 2009 was performed. Patients were divided into two groups i.e. Group I age ${\leq}40$ and Group II >40 years. A total of 401 patients with breast cancer were identified in Group I and 405 patients in Group II. Demographics, histopathological findings and receptor status of the two groups were compared. The Chi square test was used for categorical variables. Outcome was assessed on basis of 10 year locoregional recurrence free survival (LRRFS), disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). For survival analysis Kaplan Meier curves were used and significance was determined using the Log rank test. Cox regression was applied for multivariate analysis. Results: Median follow up was 4.31 (0.1-15.5) years. Median age at presentation was 34.6 years (17-40) and 51.9 years (41-82) for the two groups. Groups were significantly different from each other with respect to grade, receptor status, tumor stage and use of neoadjuvant therapy. No significant difference was present between the two groups for estimated 10 year LRRFS (86% vs 95%) (p=0.1), DFS (70% vs 70%) (p=0.5) and OS (75% vs 63%) (p=0.1). On multivariate analysis, tumor stage was an independent predictor of LRRFS, DFS and OS. Conclusions: Early onset breast cancer is associated with a distinct biology but does not lead to poorer outcomes in our population.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.14 no.9
• /
• pp.5077-5083
• /
• 2013

Background: Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer in women globally and represents the second leading cause of cancer death among women (after lung cancer). India is going through epidemiologic transition. It is reported that the incidence of breast cancer is rising rapidly as a result of changes in reproductive risk factors, dietary habits and increasing life expectancy, acting in concert with genetic factors. Materials and Methods: In order to understand the existing epidemiological correlates of breast cancer in South India, a systematic review of evidence available on epidemiologic correlates of breast cancer addressing incidence, prevalence, and associated factors like age, reproductive factors, cultural and religious factors was performed with specific focus on screening procedures in southern India. Results: An increase in breast cancer incidence due to various modifiable risk factors was noted, especially in women over 40 years of age, with late stage of presentation, lack of awareness about screening, costs, fear and stigma associated with the disease serving as major barriers for early presentation. Conclusions: Educational strategies should be aimed at modifying the life style, early planning of pregnancy, promoting breast feeding and physical activity. It is very important to obtain reliable data for planning policies, decision-making and setting up the priorities.