Braga sees 250 new people diagnosed with breast cancer every year

The Braga Hospital monitors, on average, about 250 new cases of breast cancer annually, an increase compared to 2016, when the number was 150. Among these cases, the vast majority are women under 50 and over. of 79. But this has happened cause.

I contacted O MINHO about World Breast Cancer Day, which is celebrated this Wednesday, explains Maria José Rocha, graduate assistant in obstetrics and gynecology at Hospital de Braga and graduate in gerontology, that women aged 50 to 79 are tracked in many ways. Sometimes on mobile units through campaigns organized by the Association, which it holds, then head to the Portuguese Institute of Oncology (IPO) in Porto.

“Only some patients who ask to come to Braga are treated here,” the researcher explains.

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In connection with the Nordic Region Breast Cancer Screening Program, this program consists of a voluntary call for mammograms. Women who accept this will be guided by the IPO. Those who refuse are directed by the League.

“The patients we see, about 250 new cases a year, are mostly patients outside of these ages, that is before 50, and after 79, because they are patients who have not been called by the association but who are having checkups with doctors or they notice changes in the breast and then go to the hospital” , explains.

Maria José Rocha is trying, although she stresses that this year, it has not yet been possible, to have the examination at the Hospital de Braga, and aims for 2023 to do so. Currently, bids are made in mobile vans sent to Braga by the Association, with an underwriting meter.

He explains that after the examination, a group of patients is identified who should be evaluated, since they somehow showed signs of the disease. This evaluation includes some ultrasound, without the need for a biopsy. Then there is a sieve among patients who will even have to take a biopsy, because suspicions are high.

Maria José Rocha notes that in early breast cancer cases, “the treatment success rate today is 98%, and that’s in early forms of breast cancer.”

“Fortunately, treatment success is in the range of 95 and 98%,” he says.

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Prevent or detect in time

To our newspaper, Maria José Rocha left a plea in the form of advice that can be simple, but not always remembered, for the timely detection or even prevention of breast cancer: “Pay attention, talk to doctors when you notice any breast changes and take part in an organized examination Periodic or check-up with your doctor.”

Regarding prevention, in addition to a clear examination, Maria José Rocha advises against alcoholic beverages and smoking habits, and to encourage regular physical exercise and adequate weight, not least because “fat is never good”.

The doctor explains that “fat” should be avoided because this is where estrogens, the hormones related to the control of ovulation and the development of female characteristics, are formed.

Encouraging breastfeeding is another goal of doctors to help prevent the onset of breast cancer.

Pink October Initiatives

As in other years and in almost all health units in the country, Hospital de Braga celebrates “Pink October” with various initiatives, including a session with a lawyer from the association and a social worker where labor rights were discussed. Cancer patients and the support that the association can provide to patients.

Photo: Publicity / Braga Hospital (archive)

Other initiatives include a self-make-up session and a workshop with turbans by Anna Souza, which will be held on the 26th of this month.

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Minho and Galicia are “low-risk groups” compared to the rest of the Iberian Peninsula

In February of this year, MINHO released the results of the first Iberian cancer map, in which it is possible to check the incidence of cancer by region, in a study conducted by the National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA) and the Institute. de Saúde Carlos III, Spain, where an analysis of 840,000 deaths from ten different types of cancer occurred between 2003 and 2012.

According to the map provided by the two health authorities in Iberia, the incidence has increased in Portugal since 2001, when 4,574 were recorded. In 2010, there were 6,541 cases, which indicates a trend of greater stability in the past decade, compared to 2018 data showing that breast cancer was Most diagnosed in Portugal among women (6,974 new cases annually) and the second responsible for the most deaths (1,748). Between 2003 and 2012, 15,736 women in Portugal and 60,483 women in Spain died of breast cancer, accounting for 6.2% of all cancer deaths in the Iberian Peninsula.

Mortality map and breast cancer risk map. Source: Atlas of cancer deaths in the Iberian Peninsula

The map also analyzes areas of highest risk, indicating “clumps” where the spread of breast cancer appears to be at risk, with a high mortality rate. These groups, or groups, tend to remain in the southwest of the peninsula, and cover much of the Lisbon region and the Tagus Valley, the Alentejo and the Algarve. In Spain, the spread is in the neighboring communities of Extremadura and Andalusia, but also in Valencia, Asturias and Catalonia.

In the opposite direction, the analyzed map concluded that the northern region of Portugal and Galicia are the places on the peninsula where there is a lower risk index with respect to breast cancer and where the mortality rate is lower.

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According to the study, there are many proven risk factors that lead to breast cancer, as already mentioned by Maria José Rocha. The Iberian pair of organisms also indicates the age of menopause, the age of the first child, hormonal treatments for menopause or hormonal contraceptives.

Breastfeeding and physical exercise are other recommendations of the study, noting that this type of cancer appears to indicate genetic rather than behavioral risks.