MDC-T vice-president, Thokozani Khupe has called on government to avail clinical cancer testing centres across the country to ensure early detection of breast cancer, the second most common kind of cancers affecting women.
By NQOBANI NDLOVU
Khupe, the founder of the Thokozani Khupe Cancer Foundation, urged women to go for breast cancer testing to ensure early detection against the leading cause of cancer deaths among women across the world.
“In that vein, the Thokozani Khupe Cancer Foundation would like to appeal to the government to make a very concerted effort to capacitate and to avail affordable clinical cancer testing centres in all wards throughout the country.
“This will ensure early detection of breast cancer among women so as to save lives,” she said through her personal assistant, Witness Dube in a message to mark the annual October Breast Cancer Awareness campaign.
“Thokozani Khupe Cancer Foundation, therefore, encourages every woman to examine their breast regularly in order to detect the disease early.
“Early detection of cancer is as important as its treatment. Women need to familiarise themselves with the early detection strategies such as clinical screening and breast examination,” she added.
Khupe, who is a breast cancer survivor, urged women to bestow trust on health professionals on issues to do with breast cancer testing and treatment, and not on prophets to avert preventable deaths.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
“As a cancer survivor and founder of the foundation, Khupe encourages women to seek clinical treatment and advice primarily, and over and above their faith based efforts because of its proven methodological course to treatment.
“She wishes to advise that sometimes the clinical window of treatment is lost when victims spend a lot of time on faith-based efforts before seeking any clinical diagnosis and determination of their cancer status,” Khupe said.
The Thokozani Khupe Cancer Foundation launched in 2012 seeks to alleviate the plight of cancer patients by offering advocacy campaigns, early detection programmes and assisting in policy formulation in relation to cancer issues.
According to Cancer Association of Zimbabwe, early detection of abnormalities gives the doctor a better chance to offer effective treatment.
The United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says globally 12,7 million are diagnosed with cancer every year while 7,6 million people die from the disease annually.
