DLF Foundation Showers Gift of Health and Awareness on the Women of Shikohpur Village, Gurgaon

 

dlf1 dlf2DLF Foundation in collaboration with the World Healthal Trust (WHT) organized a Cancer Awareness cum screening program at Shikohpur Village, Gurgaon to give them a gift of health and safety from cancer on this festive season. More than 50 women attended the cancer awareness cum screening camp. Pamphlets on Endometrial cancer, Breast cancer, cervical cancer and ovarian cancer were distributed among the women participants. The attendees were oriented on various types of cancer, their causes, symptoms and ways of preventing and treating the same. The DLF Foundation has collaborated with World Healthal Trust to organise 6 camps over the financial year 2015 – 2016. This was the third camp organised in Shikhopur village. The previous two camps were organised in Hayatpur and Nawada Fatehpur villages surrounding Gurgaon. The next two camps will be organised in Sakatpur and Hasanpur villages in December 2015 and January 2016 respectively. One camp will be held at Cyber City, Gurgaon for women working in the corporate sector.

For more than 4 decades, cervical cancer was the major killer disease in India. But Breast Cancer which has been on a steady rise has over taken cervical cancer as the most common and deadly killer disease of the new era. The 1 in 28 women in India was likely to develop breast cancer during her lifetime. A few decades back, breast cancer was seen only after fifty years of age and the number of young women suffering from this disease was lesser. Almost 65-70 per cent patients were above 50 years and only 30 to 35 per cent women were below 50 years. According to recent reports, India has 17 percent of the world’s population suffering from breast cancer. According to experts from AIIMS, after cervical cancer, breast cancer is second most common cancer that people are suffering from.

Almost 50 women were screened for cancer by Gynecologists. The women participants were receptive to the program and shared their concerns regarding the same with the Doctors. The participants were advised to get the Pap Smear Test done if they had symptoms and signs indicative of abnormalities in cervix. The camp benefitted the participants and it was recommended that such camps should be conducted in more number of villages in and around Gurgaon.

Speaking on the occasion, Ritesh Sinha, Director Program, Village Cluster Development, DLF Foundation said “This awareness program aims to provide people with information, resources and assistance to find convenient access to services and programmes for prevention and early detection of cancer. With the alarming speed at which cancer has spread across the nation, there is a need to educate people about the importance of its early screening to ensure control and treatment at the earliest. We believe this venture that DLF Foundation and World Healthal Trust have initiated will help curb the metastasizing of this disease.”

Dr. P. Cheena Chawla, Founder, Healthal Trust stressed on various issues, “self-examination of breast every month and a clinical examination of breasts every year is necessary. Women must maintain genital hygiene as cervical cancer is caused by infection of cervix (lower part of uterus / womb) with a virus. Persistent infection of this virus (Human Papillama Virus) is the causative agent of cervical cancer.” He further appreciated DLF Foundation for providing them an opportunity to spread awareness.

Lata Devi, a beneficiary of the camp said, “I have witnessed a death caused by cancer in my family, it is a disease which creeps in and in most of the cases by the time the patient knows she is on the verge of death. I thank both the foundation and the trust for organizing this camp. I am now apprised of the details which one must take care to avoid being a victim of cancer”.