The Leader and Campaigner of Breast Care International Ghana, Dr Mrs Beatrice Wiafe-Addae, has dispelled the notion that if men suck the breast of women it will prevent them from contracting breast cancer.
According to her, it was also not true that the frequent fondling of the breast of women by men would protect them against breast cancer.
Dr Mrs Wiafe-Addae, who is also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Peace and Love Hospitals in Accra and Kumasi, said this in response to a question at a breast cancer awareness campaign forum at Kitase, near Aburi, in the Akuapem South Municipality in the Eastern Region.
The event was attended by both women and men: traders, drivers and students from junior high schools within the Kitase area.
Alcoholic beverages
According to Dr Mrs Wiafe-Addae, women or men who took in alcoholic beverages and smoked cigarettes and other harmful substances had a high risk of contracting breast cancer.
“Too much intake of alcohol is not good for women, so stop taking it to save yourself from breast cancer. Alcohol promotes breast cancer very fast. If women continue to take alcoholic beverages and other harmful substances such as tobacco, cigarettes, marijuana and wee, among others, there is a high possibility for them,” Dr Mrs Wiafe-Addae stated.
Not painful
The starting point of breast cancer, Dr Mrs Wiafe-Addae indicated, was not painful and that was why most women did not care about their health, especially their breasts.
She, therefore, advised such women and men to limit the consumption of alcoholic beverages and smoking.
Future leaders
Dr Mrs Wiafe-Addae told the students that they were the future leaders of the country and must take good care of their breasts by resorting to early check-ups since that could guaranteed treatment.
She pointed out that there were over 4,600 women diagnosed with breast cancer and about 2,000 of them died with the disease in Ghana and, therefore, appealed to the students to regularly go for breast cancer screening to ensure that they were free from it.
Education necessary
The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Seth Kwame Acheampong, said education on breast cancer was very necessary since that could help to let the citizenry (especially women) know the dangers of the disease.
According to him, women should not wait for far too long before they go for breast screening since that was the best option to ensure whether or not they had breast cancer.
The Kitasehene, Nana Kwasi Ankrah, said he was not too happy about the number of women who attended the breast cancer programme and urged the residents of Kitase to take the health of their breast seriously.
