GCU seminar: Healthy, active lifestyle can avert breast cancer

LAHORE: Leading actress Maya Ali addressed a large gathering of female students in a breast cancer awareness seminar held at Government College University (GCU) here Wednesday. She called upon young girls to adopt healthy and active lifestyle to avoid the risk of cancer.

“My dear girls, it’s your life, you will get it only once, make a promise to yourself that you would take care of it”, said Maya Ali while addressing the seminar organised by the GCU’s Quality Enhancement Cell in collaboration with the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre (SKMCH&RC).

She encouraged the girls to talk to their parents about their health issues and immediately consult doctors if they find any unusual change in their body. She asked them to dedicate at least 30 minutes of their life to exercise in adopting an active lifestyle.

She encouraged the students to work as volunteers. “Don’t shy while raising awareness among your female family members, friends and other associates about the breast cancer and guiding them the methods of self-examination,” she concluded.

GCU Quality Enhancement Cell Director Ms Iram Sohail and Dr Afifa Ashraf from SKMCH also addressed the seminar. Iram Sohail highlighted frightening increase in the ratio of breast cancer in Pakistan and also talked about the impact of awareness campaigns.

Dr Afifa Ashraf told the GCU female students about the signs and symptoms of breast cancer and methods of self-examination, which she said, was very helpful in early detection of this disease in young girls and women. She said all women were at risk of developing breast cancer, while the factor that put some women at greater risk was family histories of breast cancer, non-healthy food and lazy lifestyle.

GCU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Asghar Zaidi appreciated the SKMCH team for organising awareness seminars in universities about this potentially fatal disease. He stressed that health and educational institutions go hand in hand in gaining a better understanding of such a diseases which affects one in nine women in our country. Prof Zaidi said that the GCU would lead in organising similar nation-wide awareness campaigns about other diseases like dementia.