Be brave.. Face it..

Was having a student ward round few days ago and there, i met a patient with breast cancer which is ulcerating. After some history taking and I realise that the patient has been hiding from the family for quite a long time. None of the family members are aware of it. It is really sad to say that these does occur quite often in our community. A lot of patient are afraid of disease and they choose to avoid it. Probably they wish to try traditional medication or they just don't bother about it and hopefully it will get better by itself.

According to my lecturer, most of these cases can be seen among those who stay in rural area. When they came to us, the cancer had become an advanced disease. I think that education does play an important role. It is so important that every one know that early detected breast cancer can be treated well. To all my friends out there, please do not hesitate to see a doctor if you feel that something is wrong. Don't hide. Be brave enough to face it so that we can help you. Another lecturer of mine always tell us that: "there is always something we can do about it. Even with an end stage disease, we still can offer palliation to reduce the suffers."

Screening test for breast cancer is available. For those with strong family history of breast cancer, please screen yourself from time to time so that early treatment can be done if you have it. If you are busy with works and always say that you have no time to go to clinic/hospital, please do a self breast examination. Learn the proper technique for self breast examination and if you find a breast lump, go to the nearby clinic immediately. Most of the breast cancer presented with painless lump. This make self breast examination become more important as it can be asymptomatic in the early stage.

Last but not least, it is your own decision whether you want to seek any medical treatment or not. But I seriously hope that every one will take it seriously. Just like what the advertisement always say : "Ingatlah orang yang tersayang." Remember their loves to you and be brave...