The Soroptomist of Dusit Breast Cancer Awareness Dinner-Tuesday October 13th

On this perfectly pink evening we certainly did celebrate life. Everyone arrived in a myriad of pink to find pink tables, flower arrangements and even a pink desert. The month of October is International Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the Dusit club used their regular dinner to invite friends and those who are interested to learn more about this disease, its early detection and treatment. 75 people attended including the Dusit Club, Bangkok club members and the Bangkok Breast Cancer support group. The Dusit Club was honoured to be able to donate 50,000 baht to the Queen Sirikit Centre -- a treatment centre for Cancer Care. While breast cancer does affect men this article will focus on women who are more likely to get breast cancer than men. 

  It was a community gathered to celebrate life, their health and out of respect of people they knew who had had breast cancer. Dr Kris Chatamra the Director of the Queen Sirikit Centre for Breast Cancer, has been working tirelessly in this field supported by his wife Khunying Finola not only in the care and treatment of breast cancer, but also in raising the awareness that early detection saves lives. Dr Kris proved to be a lively and entertaining speaker and provided a humorous slant on the medical profession and his work.

Well what causes Breast Cancer? We did not quite get the answer because the medical profession is still searching by looking into genes, the environment and diets around the world. It is well known that the incidence varies however, as Dr Kris indicated, if you put a Japanese women in London her chances are higher and an English women living in Japan will have a reduced risk for breast cancer so there seems to be no simple explanation. In Thailand the incidence is low compared to Europe 1 in 12 rather than 1 in 8 however it is increasing and is the most prevalent type of cancer for women in Thailand.

Early detection provides options that can include preserving the breast. In addition to ultrasound and MRI's we learnt about digital tomosynthesis currently in the research stage. Digital tomosynthesis of the breast is different from a standard mammogram in the same way that a CT scan of the chest is different from a standard chest x-ray. One is 3-dimensional, the other is flat.

Mammography usually takes two x-rays of each breast from different angles; top to bottom and side to side. The breast is pulled away from the body, compressed, and held between two glass plates to ensure that the whole breast is viewed. Regular mammography records the pictures on film, and digital mammography records the pictures on the computer. The images are then read by a radiologist. Breast cancer, which is denser than most healthy nearby breast tissue, appears as irregular white areas -- sometimes called shadows. Regular self examination of your breast should become part of a daily routine for women. If they have any suspicion or notice any changes at all seek medical advice.

The Queen Sirikit Centre is dedicated to providing the best medical practice for people who have Breast Cancer and the treatment is available to all –rich and poor alike. A project to educate women in the slums on health and breast care has been hugely successful as women who were apprehensive about going for screening are now ambassadors to inform others in the slums to go.

There are so many advances now to target and tailor treatment and this can include radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery, hormone therapy and immunotherapy. Immunotherapy is activating the body's own defense system and is an area of treatment which is expected to grow and become standard treatment procedure. Malignant cells are targeted and killer cells are produced like a small army marching forward to seek and destroy. Khunying Finola and Dr Kris are committed to Hospice care which specialises in the management of the terminally ill. For those who have terminal cancer it is important to manage their condition carefully, giving emotional as well as physical care and this means that everyone has the opportunity to die with dignity.

'Did you know that 95% of breast cancers are curable if detected in the early stages?'

Our new member Judy Posener was inaugurated and already she is supporting the Soroptomist commitment to give to others, being an active member of the art subcommittee. As an artist herself she is giving valuable insights and contributions to the preparation work for the fund raiser in February 'Art from within' where people will have the opportunity to go inside artists' homes. We had a resounding number of voices doing the pledge of allegiance on this very special evening.