Sixteen people have been reported dead from breast cancer at the Eastern Regional Hospital between January to September 2019 alone. 

In the same period, 44 patients were operated on and have survived up to date. A total number of 462 breast cancer cases were recorded at the Regional hospital during the same period.

Head of the surgical department at the Eastern Regional Hospital who doubles as Executive Director for Judith Ellen Awuah Darko Foundation, Dr Forster Amponsah-Manu, made the disclosure when the Foundation organised a breast cancer awareness campaign and screening in Koforidua. 

Dr Amponsah said, most patients seek spiritual intervention instead of medical intervention, a situation which aggravates the plight of many.

He said that most patients would have been saved if they sought early treatment but because most come when the cancer has reached its advanced stages and the hospital is unable to do anything for them.

According to statistics, every three minutes, someone is diagnosed with breast cancer while in every 12 minutes someone dies from breast cancer in the world.

He called on Ghanaians to regularly check their breast and report to the hospital if they detect any anomaly in the breast. 

He said, “it’s only fighting and having a positive mind that we can achieve success so we beg people that whenever you find out that you have any abnormality in your breast, please come to the hospital and we will treat it for you.”

Speaking against the stigmatisation of breast cancer patients he added, “we are urging breast cancer survivors to go out there and tell people that being diagnosed of breast cancer is not equal to death [and] that a lot of breast cancer patients survive.”

He also advised families of breast cancer survivors not to stigmatise breast cancer patients.