Doctor Alan Daher, a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, stressed the importance of detecting breast cancer early, that is, before the woman feels the fat mass, as it will be difficult to get rid of the disease completely even if the woman undergoes surgical and chemotherapy.
In an interview with IMLebanon, he explained that due to the high incidence of breast cancer at an early age in Lebanon and the Arab countries, women are required to undergo annual echographies and mammographies as soon as they reach the age of 40, while in European countries, at the age of 50, women undergo the required examinations .
Dr. Daher noted the importance of undergoing the two scans to detect different stages and cases of breast cancer, stressing that exposure to the x-ray does not cause any harm because the radiation rate is light. He pointed out that he recently advised Lebanese women from the age of thirty and above to undergo an ultrasound every few years before they reach their 40s.
He pointed out that there is no main or direct cause of cancer, but the older the woman, the higher her risk of developing cancer, as the cells are at risk of turning into cancerous cells over time.
He also saw that exposure to hormones for long periods and the genetic factor are taken into account in causing breast cancer.
In Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Dr. Daher reassured that birth control pills (which contain 2 hormones) do not affect infertility, but may help pregnancy and reduce the incidence of ovarian and uterine cancer, but taking pills following cancer exacerbates the disease situation.
As for cancer at an early age, i.e. in the twenty and thirty years, he revealed that if the mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at an early age, the girl undergoes examinations early and 5 years before the mother’s infection, that is, if the mother was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 40, the girl must undergo examinations starting at the age of 35.
Regarding the complete mastectomy, Dr. Daher explained that in the Arab countries there is a wrong idea regarding how to get rid of this malignant disease, pointing out that only the lump should be removed, not the breast as a whole.
He stressed that undergoing breast augmentation surgery does not lead to cancer and that all women undergo natural examinations.
Dr. Daher encouraged pregnant women to breastfeed, as they are therefore less likely than others to develop breast cancer.
Daher concluded, recalling the need to undergo annual examinations to monitor the disease in its infancy, because there are no ways to prevent this malignant disease.
