Breast cancer is the most common and widely spread type of cancer in Palestine said the Palestinian Ministry of Health on Thursday.
The ministry said a total of 503 new cases of breast cancer were documented until the end of 2017 in the occupied West Bank while 327 new other cases were recorded in the blockaded Gaza Strip in 2016.
Since the beginning of the year a total of 3854 women underwent early examination of breast cancer in the centers of the Ministry of Health in the occupied West Bank of whom 210 cases of suspected breast cancer were ordered to conduct follow-up tests to ensure their safety the ministry noted.
In 2017 the ministry provided breast cancer screening services to 9721 cases in the occupied West Bank of whom 2772 cases were found to be abnormal and accounted for 28.5% of the examined cases.
According to the World Health Organization breast cancer is the most frequent cancer among women impacting 2.1 million women each year and also causes the greatest number of cancer-related deaths among women. In 2018 it is estimated that 627000 women died from breast cancer – that is approximately 15% of all cancer deaths among women.
While breast cancer rates are higher among women in more developed regions rates are increasing in nearly every region globally.
In order to improve breast cancer outcomes and survival early detection is critical. There are two early detection strategies for breast cancer: early diagnosis and screening. Limited resource settings with weak health systems where the majority of women are diagnosed in late stages should prioritize early diagnosis programs based on awareness of early signs and symptoms and prompt referral to diagnosis and treatment.
