To commemorate the Breast Cancer Awareness Month, ASA Savings and Loans has partnered with the St. Joseph's Hospital in Koforidua in the Eastern Region to conduct a free breast cancer screening at the Koforidua main lorry station.

The venue selected was to make the screening easily accessible to traders.

This year’s awareness campaign which forms part of the financial institution's corporate social responsibility is to encourage early detection and prevention.

Speaking at the event, the Head of the Public Health unit at the St. Joseph Hospital, Yaa Dufie advised families to avoid reliance on herbal concoctions and other traditional methods, and report suspicious lumps in the breast promptly, to any health facility for immediate attention.

She urged them to avoid alcohol intake and guard against weight gain.

The Koforidua Area Manager for ASA Savings and Loans, David Amevor urged participants to carry out monthly breast self-examination to help with early detection.

At the end of the event, 114 women were screened.

The few women that the medical team detected had some abnormality around the breast were referred to do mammogram for early detection.

The CSR Manager of ASA Savings and Loans, Richard Nartey said this is the second breast screening exercise conducted by the company in the ‘Pink October’ month adding, a lot more will follow across the country.

According to him, "this is an annual event organized by the company, but this year a lot more localities will be reached out to."

“We dedicate resources to create awareness and sponsor the screening exercise mainly because, over 90% of our clients are women”, he added.