In observance of the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October, the Department of Health (DOH) and the Philippine Cancer Society Inc. (PCSI) renewed their partnership in fighting this deadly disease through the Breast Cancer Medicine Access Program which provides free chemotherapeutic medicines for poor patients afflicted with early stage of the disease.
In a bid to improve the survival rates of women diagnosed with breast cancer in the Philippines, the DOH and the PCSI formally launched the Program last May 2011 at the East Avenue Medical Center. The Program made use of the patient navigation scheme of the PCSI ensured full compliance of the patients to the regimen through continuous monitoring of their status and health condition throughout the duration of treatment.
Six months after, about 170 poor patients from all over the country have availed of the free full cycle of medicines in East Avenue Medical Center (EAMC), Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center (JRMMC) and the Rizal Medical Center, all of which posses the capacity, support facilities and a multidisciplinary team of experts for managing breast cancer. Twenty five (25) patients completed their full treatment cycles.
“Graduates” of the program, current enrolled patients and their families have expressed their gratitude to DOH and its partners by assembling in the DOH to convey its appreciation and generate awareness on breast cancer which is being celebrated this October. “I am thankful to the DOH for this answered prayer. With the very expensive treatment for my cancer, I thought I may never see my son grow up because we could not afford it,“ said Tess Varona of Mindoro, one of the first to graduate from the program. She now considers herself a cancer survivor.
Newly installed Program Director of the National Center for Pharmaceutical Access and Management (DOH-NCPAM) Dr. Ivan Escartin also expressed satisfaction to the program and the partnership with PCSI and hospitals adding that the program will be expanded to other cancer types as well.
Dr. Rachael Marie B. Rosario, Executive Director of PCSI, acknowledged government efforts in making expensive cancer treatment available for poor patients and pledged PCSI’s commitment to strengthen the partnership with the DOH in promoting early breast cancer screening particularly among poor women and by providing assured access to medicines as well as psychosocial support.
Both emphasized the need to strengthen advocacy efforts on early detection. “Breast cancer is a curable disease when detected, treated and managed early,” added Dr. Rosario.
Breast cancer is now the leading cancer site overtaking lung cancer for both sexes in the Philippines (i.e. 15% of all cancers). It is also the number one cause of cancer morbidity and mortality among Filipino women accounting for almost 30% of all female malignancies.
It is estimated that there will be a total of 12, 262 new breast cancer cases in 2010 with 4,371 deaths. Latest data reveals that three out of every 100 Filipinas are likely to develop breast cancer in their lifetime and that one out of every 100 are likely to die from the disease before age 75 (Philippine Cancer Facts and Estimates 2010).
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