Events marking the GCC Breast Cancer Awareness Week were held in the capital and different other governorates to convince people that there are very high chances of cure of breast cancer if the disease is detected early. The theme colour of the events remained purple that symbolises all types of cancer.
The 6th Gulf Cancer Awareness Week (February 1-7) is being held in the Sultanate under the auspices of HH Sayyida Dr Mona bint Fahd al Said, Patron of the Oman Cancer Association (OCA). The Association was behind series of events being held in the Sultanate.
The OCA in collaboration with different governmental, private and non-governmental organisations held activities to celebrate the Gulf Cancer Awareness Week that aims to strengthen the collaboration among different community sectors to encourage the society to practice early detection and disease prevention.
The celebrations were held under the ‘40%/40%’ slogan which was chosen based on the scientific evidence that indicates that 40 per cent of cancer diseases can be prevented by following a healthy lifestyle, adopting correct dietary habits, practising regular physical activity and maintaining an ideal body weight, while 40 types of cancer can be cured if detected early and managed with the appropriate treatment plan promptly.
In doing so, the Association has formed a committee for the same purpose and prepared a set of programmes and events that extended throughout the week, including seminars and virtual workshops and community awareness campaigns with the participation of healthcare professionals and volunteers from the community.
Further, various activities implemented by specialists for instance training in the self-breast examination for early detection of breast cancer. Also, the Mobile Mammography Unit conducted breast cancer screening for women.
Considering the spiritual needs of the patients and their families, the Association also took the initiative of reading the holy Quran to heal the patients and pray for those who lost lives to cancer. Among the activities was also the celebration of World Cancer Day which takes place on February 4 every year.
According to OCA, various sectors of the community have supported the Association in implementing these activities that showcased their efforts towards disease prevention and early detection as well as their support and empowerment of patients with cancer and the survivors.
The Association has planned several activities for children in Dar al Hanan including visits to cancer patients with the participation of all groups of society to raise awareness about cancer and support patients and their families. To ensure safety to everyone in the wake of pandemic, however, some of these activities were canceled.
There will be a continuation of virtual events and communication through social media and the programmes are announced through the Association’s website and social networking sites. The OCA is holding health promotion activities organised for citizens and residents of Oman of all age groups to enhance the concept of awareness and reduce the risk of being affected with cancer enabling everyone to contribute to the building and the prosperity of the nation effectively.
Besides, it is also focusing on professional development and scientific research of healthcare professionals stressing on the importance of collaboration and unification of efforts among all groups of society to fight this life-threatening disease.
The Association hopes that this celebration and cooperation between it and all other institutions in the society will be the beginning of a fruitful and sustainable relationship for all the parties that will support its goal of having a healthier society with better human resources that work on developing scientific research and innovation in this field.
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