The Noonkopir Afya Foundation, in partnership with the Kajiado County Government, Family Bank, ED Source Africa, and other partners, held a one-day breast cancer awareness campaign in Kitengela.
The campaign aimed at advocating the importance of breast health education and early detection by facilitating discussions between the community, medical experts, and key opinion leaders, as well as sharing informative materials.
While officiating the event, Kajiado County Governor’s spouse, Madam Edna Lenku, said that it is important for people to embrace routine cancer screening as early detection saves lives and costs in treatment.
“Many families are losing their loved ones to cancer. It is therefore important for everyone to go for routine screenings. If cancer is detected early while it is still in stages 1 and 2, it is easily treated, but when it advances to stages 3 and 4, it will not only be difficult to treat, but it will also be a huge financial burden to the family and community,” said H.E. Madam Lenku.
The spouse of the governor advised residents to visit the hospital for medical checkups whenever they have any medical issues rather than just resort to using herbal concoctions.
“Due to our African traditions, we have embraced herbal medication, which has been effective before, but we must realise that times have changed. It is important for you to visit the hospital to get diagnosed and have the right treatment,” she said.
Margaret Masara from the Noonkopir Afya Foundation said that the foundation decided to carry out free cancer screening services and an awareness campaign as many people are not aware that early detection saves lives.
“Many people view cancer as a death sentence and would rather keep away from knowing whether they have it or not. It is therefore important to create awareness that it is not a death sentence, and once diagnosed early, it can be treated at a lesser cost than when it has advanced,” said Masara.
She also emphasised the importance of having a well-balanced diet to build the body’s immunity and to avoid malnutrition, which often hastens the advancement of the condition.
Priscilla Wamuyu, a breast cancer survivor, also encouraged residents to go for routine cancer screening, saying that it saves a lot on costs.
“I used to ignore the cancer screening services until I discovered two lumps on my left breast. I was diagnosed with cancer, and since it was in advanced stages, I had a mastectomy, which could not have been the case if I had gone for routine cancer screening,” said Wamuyu.
Apart from the free breast and cervical cancer screening services, the residents also learnt about dietary interventions and wellness from the experts.
Free breast cancer screening will continue at Mawepi Centres in Miriam’s’ Place and Kilimani until October 30th.
By Diana Meneto
