Over 1000 Damang residents benefit from medical screening

More than one thousand residents benefited from a medical outreach and free breast cancer screening organised by Gold Fields Ghana Foundation (GFGF) at Damang and Amoanda in the Prestea -Huni Valley Municipality of the Western Region, on Saturday.

The GFGF programmewas held in partnership with the Rotary Club as part of the breast cancer awareness month marked inOctober each year, to detect early signs of the disease.

Doctors at the event, reported that,  patients diagnosed with diabetes and high blood pressure,  were advised to continue  with their medications,  monthly check -ups and regular  exercises.

Giving a talk on detection and management of breast cancer, the Health Services Manager, Gold Fields West Africa, Dr Ishmael Sackey,harped on early  reports of  the  disease to ensure good attention.

He advised women to remove all fears and doubts   about surgeries  andbreast cancer, and, rather seek medical attention,stressing “don’t wait for the disease to be serious before you seek medical attention.”

“Cancer can spread from the head to toe. It begins and gradually spread to other parts of the body, and, soweneedto draw our attention to this and stay longer with early detection,”DrSackey added.

He said, one critical symptom of breast cancer was a   lump in a woman’s breast and told women to regularly do self -detection at home even with the help of the men.

The General Manager,Abosso Gold Fields Limited, Michiel Van der  Merwe, assured that GFGF  was  committed  to improving community access to health care and mentioned that, it  had invested  about GH₵ 240,000 in the programme.

To date,   he announced that GFGF invested  about   GH₵4.8 million  in thehealth sector including   the  provision  of health care centres, doctors’ and nurses’ quarters, hospital equipment, drugs  and outreach  programmes.

Gold Fields, Mr Merwe said,would ensure the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)  in its catchment areas including health and education.

The  Municipal Health Director, Prestea -Huni Valley,Mr Joseph Kwame Sampson,noted that  in 2020,  the  World Health Organisation  estimated that,out of  about   2.3 million women affected by breast cancer,  700, 000 died.

This situation, he said, was   unacceptable and therefore, advised society to make conscious efforts to reduce the mortality rate. 

The breast, he explained, underwent changes during puberty, menstruation and child- giving stages and advised women to take note, by alsoreporting to health experts.

The Rotary President at Tarkwa, Daniel Baddy, called for collaboration with Gold Fields to bring health care to the communities and also   put smiles on the faces of women affected by breast cancer.

He said, in 2019, the Tarkwa Rotarians together with Gold Fields organised a breast cancer screening programme for 200 women at Damang and Amonda  and  that one woman with a suspected case,  was now  doing well.

FROM CLEMENT ADZEI BOYE, DAMANG