KUALA TERENGGANU: A lack of awareness and excessive trust in traditional healers continues to hinder breast cancer patients in the state from seeking timely treatment, says Zuraida Md Noor.
The Terengganu women, family and welfare committee deputy chairman said those diagnosed with breast cancer often conceal their condition from family members, opting for alternative treatments instead. Many only seek hospital care at the last minute, which is often too late.
“Even my elder sister died from breast cancer. Our family only found out she had been suffering in silence at the 11th hour,” she shared at the “Pink Etiqa” initiative launch, a collaboration between Etiqa Insurance and the National Cancer Society of Malaysia (NCSM), held at the PPR Hall in Hiliran yesterday.
The event, which was jointly organised by Hospital Salam, was also attended by NCSM’s deputy medical director Dr A. Vignesvari and Darul Iman Information Secretariat’s deputy director Sazali Mohd Noor and Etiqa’s regional director for East Coast region Muhamad Nurawi Abdul Rashid.
Zuraida said the state government is committed to raising awareness, especially in rural communities.
“We are determined to change perceptions and encourage early detection, hospital care and treatment. We also aim to instil awareness among husbands, urging them to support their wives in getting screened and treated early if diagnosed,” she said.
Zuraida added it is the state government’s goal to reduce the number of patients seeking medical help only when the cancer has progressed to a late stage, when the risk of further spread is higher.
Zuraida also said the state government has outlined 14 initiatives to support women’s welfare, including breast cancer screening. She called for early screenings to be conducted across all 32 parliamentary constituencies in Terengganu.
“We will work towards disseminating the message on the importance of early screening to the grassroots, especially to village development committees to carry out such health programmes statewide,” she said.
