Amosun’s Free Cancer Screening Saves 1,000 Women in Ogun

Ehime Alex

Over 1,000 women are said to have benefited from the free breast and cervical cancer test awareness programmes put in place by the Uplift Development Foundation in Ogun State.

The wife of Ogun State governor and President of the Foundation, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun, disclosed this during a two-day free Lumpectomy exercise for women held at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, according to a statement made available to THISDAY.

Noting that the programme was part of the state government’s efforts at reducing maternal mortality and morbidity in the state, the governor’s wife said the Foundation had footed the medical bill of patients diagnosed of lumps in their breast so as to swiftly halt the disease at its early stage especially among women.

The free lumpectomy exercise has been on-going since year 2016 in which about 1,000 women and one male benefited across the three Senatorial Districts of the State, Mrs. Amosun said whilst enjoining the womenfolk to participate more in the awareness campaign.

She noted also that, the lumps removed from the breast of beneficiaries had been taken to medical laboratory for further histological test to ascertain if the lumps were cancerous or not, stressing that early detection was the safest way to preventing breast and cervical cancer.

She added, “The 2017 UPlift breast and cervical cancer awareness programme was organised for female professionals and corporate personnel who ordinarily are too busy or hardly have time for medical check-up.”
At the Lumpectomy exercise, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, said that breast cancer was the commonest among women with one out of eight women dying daily of the disease.

While applauding the exercise as a step in the right direction which had contributed immensely to healthcare delivery in the state, Ipaye urged women to visit any of the three Uplift Development Foundation Cancer Screening Centres including Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, State Hospitals in Ota and Ijaye, respectively to know their health status.

On her part, the President of the Ogun Medical Women Association, Dr. Stella Ogunmuyiwa, said Governor Amosun in his magnanimity had paid for the surgery and drugs of all the women diagnosed with the lumps, charging womenfolk not to limit themselves to self-examination but visit any of the designated government hospitals.