Bungoma Woman Rep Catherine Wambilianga has implored women and girls to prioritise presenting themselves for cancer screening.
Speaking at a funeral service of Nancy Namaeso who succumbed to cancer in Webuye West on Saturday, Wambilianga said if cancer is detected early it can be managed citing breast cancer as the type of cancer that can be managed if detected early.
“Breast cancer is the type of cancer that can be managed if a patient is presented early at the health facility,” Wambilianga said, adding that everybody should be alert and advise others to go for regular check-ups.
The Ford Kenya MP added, “Cancer is a monster that sweeping many Kenyans because they ignored to go for early screening.”
Wambilianga further stated that women should make cancer screening a routine.
The MP called on the Bungoma county government to consider setting up a cancer screening centre.
Currently, cancer patients in Bungoma travel to Eldoret and other counties for screening, radiotherapy and chemotherapy sessions.
“The current governor or whoever will come later should make sure Bungoma gets a modern cancer screening centre where these women and girls seated here can visit for screening to avoid cancer-related deaths in future,” she said.
The second-term MP also asked Bungoma residents to register for the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) to help cushion them from huge hospital bills.
While Speaking in Bungoma last week, Health and Sanitation CS Susan Nakhumicha revealed that Bungoma is a region where residents are detained in health facilities due to high hospital bills, imploring residents to enrol on the SHIF starting July.
Whitney Kumotia, Medical Laboratory Officer at Life Care Hospitals, said that breast cancer is a disease in which abnormal breast cells grow out of control and form tumours.
“If left unchecked, the tumours can spread throughout the body and become fatal,” she told the Star.
According to the data from the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2022, there were 2.3 million women diagnosed with breast cancer and 670, 000 deaths globally.
The report further stated that breast cancer occurs in every country of the world in women at any age after puberty but with increasing rates in later life.