KUWAIT CITY, Jan 9, (KUNA): The Ministry of Education has adopted an early breast cancer detection program, one within a package of edu-health projects for female students, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Education Muna Al-Loughani told a conference, Monday.

The official opened a press conference to launch the program, aimed at high-school students, and noted there is a global increase in rates of cancer, which requires more care to guarantee early detection. The CAN campaign project was held in cooperation with the Health Ministry and is implemented by the Physical Education Technical Supervisors in cooperation with a group of teaching and technical staff that received training for this purpose.

Al-Loughani recalled that recovery rates are as high as 97 percent in case of early detection, and that the only way to counter the disease is to catch it early, since there are no proven means of prevention.
Head of the CAN campaign Dr Abderrahman Al-Awadhi said he had nursed the idea for this campaign for 30 years, “and I am most pleased to see it come true after all this time.” He said the aim is to spread awareness among young women on cancer detection, breast self-exam, and the need to maintain a healthy active lifestyle, as well as spread awareness on the role stress plays in chronic disease.
Secretary General of the Gulf Federation for Cancer Control Dr. Khalid Al-Saleh said the GFCC signed a cooperation agreement with the World Health Organization to encourage and support GCC states’ efforts and federation members, topped by Kuwait Society for Smoking and Cancer Prevention.

Al-Saleh noted the campaign comes as statistics indicate breast cancers constitute a third of cancer cases in Kuwait, with 320 new cases each year, meaning an average of a case a day. It is unfortunate, he added, that half these cases are only detected in late stages when chances for recovery become slimmer.
Breast cancer is a cancer that starts in the tissues of the breast. There are two main types of breast cancer:

•  Ductal carcinoma starts in the tubes (ducts) that move milk from the breast to the nipple. Most breast cancers are of this type.
•  Lobular carcinoma starts in the parts of the breast, called lobules, that produce milk.

In rare cases, breast cancer can start in other areas of the breast.
Breast cancer may be invasive or noninvasive. Invasive means it has spread from the milk duct or lobule to other tissues in the breast. Noninvasive means it has not yet invaded other breast tissue. Noninvasive breast cancer is called “in situ.”