Journal of the Egyptian National Cancer Institute
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J Egypt Natl Canc Inst · Dec 2008
Responding to the challenges of breast cancer in egypt and other arab countries.
Physicians in Egypt and other Arab and developing countries still have to deal on a daily basis with large numbers of patients with advanced stages of breast cancer at presentation. Efforts at measuring the magnitude of the breast cancer issues, epidemiology, and awareness, are now moving further in the right direction. We are now starting to face the challenges of early detection of breast cancer as well as the implementation of proper modern management. ⋯ Once a screening strategy is adopted, women aged 40 years and up should be screened at yearly intervals because data from Egypt and other Arab countries indicate that 50% of breast cancers are seen in women below age 50 years, and because young women have more aggressive tumors [17,18] and may be missed by two-year intervals. Finally, WHOP investigators, staff, and their sponsors are to be commended for this excellent, well planned and executed project that sets a great example for devotion for science and public health. In addition to regional and national cancer registries, they provide many new innovative approaches to characterize, diagnose and treat breast cancer in Egypt and other Arab countries. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED)