Dr Beatrice Wiafe Addai, President of Breast care International, says 2,900 Ghanaians are diagnosed of breast cancer every year and half of that number die from the disease.
She said the number represents only those who report at the hospitals because many patients seek treatment from other sources such as prayer camps and shrines.
�We are not saying prayers are bad but our appeal is for them to use prayer to support what medical doctors do at the hospitals,� she said.
Dr Wiafe Addai, who was speaking on Wednesday during the launch of the UT Bank Pledge Pink 2013 Campaign in Accra, said most of the deaths were caused by ignorance and misconceptions about the disease.
The Pledge Pink Campaign, which is to help raise awareness on breast cancer in Ghana, is an initiative of the Bank, and was launched in 2010 in collaboration with the Cancer Society of Ghana.
The launch also coincided with the unveiling of a 100,000 Mobile Screening Van, which was acquired by the Pledge Pink Campaign to reach out to those in the hinterlands for screening.
Dr Wiafe Addai said breast cancer is a global issue and stressed the need for stakeholders to come together to help fight the disease.
She said the incidence among men in Ghana is around one to three per cent while in Nigeria it is five per cent.
Dr Addai called on corporate bodies to support efforts to educate the people about the disease.
�Cancer is a curable and a preventable disease if diagnosed early and I would like to use this opportunity to appeal to our women to seek early treatment.
�We must talk about the breast cancer and ensure that the education and awareness creation goes down and far to the people. Many people claim they do not know about the disease and they are right because those of us who are informed are not talking about it, �she said.
Dr Addai said �diseases like malaria and tuberculosis would one day leave us but breast cancer would continue to live with us�, and urged all to start talking about it to achieve positive impact.
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