Each year, people commemorate International Women’s Day with discussions on empowerment, leadership, and equality. However, another aspect of empowerment that often gets neglected is women taking control of their own health.
From one end of the country to the opposite, many women choose to put their health as a low priority behind their family, job, social life, and other responsibilities. Symptoms go unnoticed; screenings are postponed; and appointments with medical professionals are delayed or cancelled. Unfortunately, by the time many women seek help from a health professional, their disease—such as breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer—is often very advanced.
This International Women’s Day, female surgeons use it not only as a time to celebrate women but also as a time to promote women taking proactive steps regarding their health. The message they share with other women is very easy to articulate—women need to take care of their own health in the same manner they do for their families.
Current cancer trends should be alarming. In India today, breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer diagnosed among women, and a large percentage of women are diagnosed when their disease is at an advanced stage. However, there is good news from the medical community—many cancers can be treated successfully if detected early.This is where education, awareness and timely screening can make an impact.
According to Dr. Niharika Garach, Surgical Oncologist at SSO Cancer Hospital, a leading barrier to detecting cancer is not a lack of treatment but a delay in women getting proper care and not having routine screening.”Women are often the backbone of their families and tend to put the health of others before their own. Symptoms of breast cancer like lumps, unexplained bleeding or continuing abdominal pain should never be ignored. In addition, routine mammography is an invaluable tool to find breast cancer before the patient develops symptoms.Mammography is one of the most effective ways to detect breast cancer early. After being diagnosed, women with early stage tumors are often easier to treat and have much higher survival rates than those with late stage tumors. It is critical that women undergo regular mammograms and have regular check-ups in a timely manner in order to save their lives.”
In addition to the health of a woman, Dr. Niharika raises an issue of culture – the idea that it is a woman’s duty to suffer – this mentality needs to change in order to improve cancer outcomes.
On the other hand, Dr. Imaan Rumani, Surgical Oncologist at SSO Cancer Hospital, states that another risk factor that is often overlooked is the rise of cancers that are developing in post-menopausal women. At this time, many women think they are no longer susceptible to developing cancer.
Many women don’t get routine health screenings after they go through menopause. Many reasons exist; one reason being that many women believe there are lower risks related to cancer after they go through menopause. The reality is that as a woman ages, her risk for many cancers (like breast and ovarian cancers) increases. Women often disregard symptoms of breast cancer or ovarian cancer, as both types of cancer can have very subtle symptoms and typically progress slowly over time. Women who have gone through menopause need to continue their regular health screenings and stay vigilant about their overall health, as being diagnosed with these types of cancer early can dramatically improve their health outcomes after having been diagnosed.
In reference to comments from Dr. Chaitra Shetty, Surgical Oncologist at SSO Cancer Hospital, regarding the treatment of patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer, she states, “The unique challenge that head and neck cancer present for women is related to the function of the body part(s) that women use to express themselves daily (i.e., think about how someone who has head and neck cancer has to communicate, eat, and how their body appears). My goal is to remove the patient’s cancer and to also attempt to reconstruct as much of the material lost to surgery by using microvascular reconstruction (which is the process of moving a piece of living tissue from one part of the body and transplanting it to a different part of the body). My ultimate goal as I perform surgery on women diagnosed with head/neck cancer is to restore my patients’ ability (once again) to speak normally, eat reasonably and smile with confidence. In addition, early detection of head and neck cancer remains very important because early detection can prevent extensive reconstructive surgery later if the patient has been detected early via regular scheduled health screenings.”
Timely diagnosis significantly decreases treatment difficulty and maintains function to have a healthy quality of life, Dr. Shetty states.
With that being said, there is an expanding effort in oncology that understands medical care alone will not reduce the cancer epidemic. True change requires a change from mindset, to encourage females to be proactive, preventative, and empowered when dealing with their health care.
International Women’s Day celebrates how female surgeons at SSO Cancer Hospital are bringing awareness to family, community and employer support for females taking care of themselves. Collective efforts toward supporting females with regular routine check-ups, providing access to screenings and fostering open dialogue about female health care can positively impact on lowering mortality rates related to female only cancers.
Empowerment is more than just providing opportunities or accomplishing high level goals. Oftentimes the most empowering act can be something as simple as completing a health care screening that is done at the appropriate time.
