Breast cancer survivors enjoyed an afternoon filled with love and heartfelt moments at a special tea party held in honour of their strength, bravery, and resilience. The activity, organized by the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Nutrition as part of its Breast Cancer Awareness Month observance, provided a meaningful opportunity for survivors to come together, acknowledge their strength and resilience, and encourage one another. The gathering also served as a reminder that no woman has to face the breast cancer journey alone.
During the gathering, breast cancer survivors were treated to heartfelt and reassuring messages of hope and encouragement, emphasizing the importance of continued love and support throughout their journey.
Medical Surveillance Officer Dr. Dana Dacosta Gomez highlighted the burden of breast cancer in Saint Lucia, noting that from 2011 to date, breast cancer has remained the second leading cancer in the country. She also underscored the importance of the data from the National Cancer Registry to understand the country’s cancer burden and to improve the quality of care and outcomes for those affected by the disease.
“We can say that the data collected is essential for understanding the burden of disease in our population and these figures have a very human impact. Each number represents someone’s life who has been affected, whose family is worried, who may be struggling with treatment or someone’s future who may now seem uncertain,” Gomez said. “We are not only counting cases, we are looking to understand the patterns, we are looking to identify risk factors, recognizing possible disparities and generating the evidence that is needed to guide effective public health action.”
Chief Medical Officer Dr. Sharon Belmar-George commended the breast cancer survivors for their strength, while also acknowledging the invaluable role played by their families and caregivers throughout their journey. Belmar-George further encouraged continued efforts to raise awareness about breast cancer, emphasizing the importance of early detection and regular screening in the fight against the disease.
“Although October is a dedicated month towards cancer, it does not end with October and it has to continue throughout the year; our efforts of getting every woman that we know tested early,” Belmar-George said.
“For the first time we have mammography, something which I spoke of very early when I started in this position given our data for cancer; we did not have mammography in the public sector. Minister did not only support us having mammography in our two hospitals but under Universal Health Coverage, [it’s] provided free of charge to everyone in country and this is the first time we are having this and this is extremely commendable,” she added.
In his remarks, Minister for Health, Wellness and Nutrition Moses Jn Baptiste reaffirmed government’s commitment to strengthening the country’s healthcare services and putting measures in place to address the growing burden of breast cancer. He highlighted the efforts to improve access to screening, early detection and diagnosis services for breast cancer.
“I really want to thank you, I want to thank the professionals, the specialist and all those who are working with us to ensure that we tackle this issue. Things are not going to happen right away of course, but we need to develop a path and that is what we are working on with the registry and with all of our partners to ensure that we create some sensible path forward to hopefully one day eliminate or as close as possible to reducing the number of breast cancer cases,” he said.
Breast cancer survivors were encouraged to draw on their strength and courage to inspire and support others facing similar challenges, while using their experiences to raise awareness and motivate women to get screened regularly.