Breast cancer is one of the major type of cancer in women. Most of the women don’t undergo screening for breast cancer due to lack of awareness. This leads to delay in detecting the disease which makes treatment complicated. Timely screening will ensure detection of the disease before it advances to fatal stage.
To bridge the gap in the accessibility to cancer screening, Jivika in partnership with the Government of Assam and Siemens Healthineers has introduced Healthcare On Wheels. Healthcare On Wheels provides cancer screening facility of three major cancers (oral, breast and cervical cancer) along with the screening of other Non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
A 29 years old lady, named Shabnam Ahmed (changed name) visited our health camp organized in Tupamari village of Nagarbera block on 29th of July, 2023. She was hesitant to get her breast screening done due to social stigmas. She was counselled by the nursing staff after which she was comfortable to get her breast screened. She underwent breast screening and was found suspected of breast cancer due to some abnormalities observed. She was counselled by the Medical Officer and was referred to Guwahati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for further investigation and treatment.
In GMCH, she underwent FNAC test and biopsy after which the Doctor suggested she undergo surgery for breast lump removal. Several follow-ups were taken by the team and the Program Officer herself visited her home and counselled her and her husband for treatment (surgery). She underwent surgery on 20th September, 2023. The surgery was conducted successfully and Shabnam is now recovering.
After the surgery, our team visited her again to check on her health. She and her family members were grateful to the team for being with them and guiding them throughout Shabnam’s journey. They said that they would not have known about it if Shabnam did not undergo screening for breast cancer at our camp. Jivika focuses on continuum of care and ensures that the beneficiaries complete their treatment. We are grateful to our partners- Government of Assam and Siemens Healthineers for supporting us in this noble initiative.
Note: Name of the beneficiary has been changed for privacy concerns.