Meghalaya to have mass breast cancer screening
By IANSWednesday, November 17, 2010
NEW DELHI - Meghalaya will be the first state in India to have mass screening programmes in all its districts to detect breast, oral and cervix cancer among women, says an NGO working for cancer detection.
Roko Cancer Charitable Trust, which has embarked on a Private-Public Partnership (PPP) mode project with Meghalya government to provide and run fully-equipped mobile breast detection units, said the entire state will be covered by mass screening programme by 2013.
The trust’s India director Isha Bhandari said a new mobile unit will be placed in Garo hills in January to cover three districts of the state. She also said that a mobile unit is already placed in the Shillong area to cover four districts in West Khasi region.
She said the mobile cancer detection unit has machines to detect breast cancer and has facilities such as examination rooms and power back-up. “The service is provided free to people. The entire population of Meghalaya will be covered by 2013,” she said.
Bhandari said a pre-awareness campaign will be launched in the three districts of Garo hills before the arrival of the mobile unit.
Roko Cancer Charitable Trust is an NGO working towards creating awareness and detection of breast, cervix and oral cancer among women in semi-urban and rural areas.
