Annual walk to commemorate Breast Health Day announced

“Between October 2009 and July 2013, 46,000 women were invited for breast screening, of whom 27,000 accepted the invitation and 193 were found to have cancer. This means that 193 women and their families were saved from the trauma of finding the cancer at an advanced stage and that treatment will be less drastic with greater chances of survival.”

This was stated by Gertrude Abela from Europa Donna Malta (Breast Care Support Group), which is committed to raising awareness of breast cancer and breast health. Ms Abela was speaking during a press conference hosted at Oysho outlet at The Point in Sliema to announce the annual Walk to commemorate Breast Health Day. In fact the event is being organised in collaboration with the female intimate wear brand.

The walk will be held on Sunday 13th October and is being organised by Europa Donna Malta, the Maltese forum of Europa Donna, the European Breast Cancer Coalition. In Malta, the Group works to raise awareness about breast cancer and also offers support to people affected by the disease.

Addressing the press, Ms Abela said "We are constantly being fed with information, statistics, warnings and first-hand experiences concerning breast cancer and yet, lack of information and fear are still main factors that are fuelling the figures of cancer victims, especially breast cancer.  From our constant contact with people, we find that fear plays a major role in whether women decide to go for cancer screening or not. Many still fail to understand that breast screening can detect cancer in the early stages when treatment is most effective and so is to be encouraged, not avoided. ," said Ms Abela.

The average 5 year survival rate among European women, between 1995 and 1999 was 79.50% which shows that awareness and early screening can save lives.

"We are proud to be associating Oysho with this awareness event and we are pledging our full support to ensure its success," said Annabelle Gauci from Oysho. "Oysho is a unique female brand that celebrates femininity and respects the intimacy and the unique traits of every individual woman. Our tag line 'Love Yourself' is very much in line with the spirit of this awareness campaign that will seek to encourage women to love themselves a bit more by considering giving more attention to the risks of breast cancer," added Ms Gauci.

During the Breast Health Day walk, all participants will be carrying different colour silhouettes in solidarity with all those people currently experiencing this cancer journey. Pink will represent the incidence of breast cancer, White will be for those who sadly have succumbed to this disease and Blue will be for men who can also incur breast cancer.

In fact, that breast cancer only concerns women is also a common misconception. Although it is rare, men too can get breast cancer and cases are on the rise, according to a recently published study by the University of Texas. In this study, researchers outlined the importance that men become more aware of the possibility that they may get breast cancer - a statement backed by the study's results that showed the incidence of the disease is up from 0.86 to 1.08 cases per 100,000 men over the last 25 years.

The causes of breast cancer are still not fully understood, and incidence is increasing. However, treatment has improved considerably and more and more women are surviving breast cancer.

"Regular self-examinations and other breast checks are important. And women can reduce their risk of breast cancer by maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol intake and staying physically active. Europa Donna Malta's message is clear - be breast aware!" concluded Ms Abela.

The Breast Health Awareness walk on Sunday 13th October will start with registrations at 9.30am and the walk will commence at 10.00am. Participants will reach St George's Square in Valletta at around 11.30am. Registrations for the walk will be against a donation of €5 which will help support Europa Donna Malta's future information and awareness campaigns.

The silhouette walk originated a few years ago in Australia and was then held in Cyprus. Three years ago, Europa Donna Malta held the first edition of the walk in Malta.