The Regional Secretary for Health visited today a Mobile Breast Cancer Screening Unit in Vila Franca do Campo, an initiative that aimed to mark the World Cancer Day, calling for the importance of prevention.

Teresa Machado Luciano stressed the relevance of complementarity and coordination between primary health care and hospital care, that is, between the Island Health Units and hospitals so that, in case of detection of pre-malignant lesions, patients “may benefit from faster access to hospital treatment."

The Secretary for Health called for participation in the four screening programmes under way in the Azores, namely oral cancer, which is unique in the country, breast cancer, colon and rectal cancer and cervical cancer, emphasising that this is the only way to detect and treat the disease early.

Mobile screening units cover all islands of the archipelago. In 2019, the island of Corvo hosted a breast cancer screening unit.

The Organised Breast Cancer Screening in the Azores, which started in 2009, registered a participation rate of 74% last year, with 485 cases diagnosed.

Teresa Machado Luciano stressed that the best way to fight cancer is to avoid it, noting that it is necessary to combat major risk factors, such as smoking, inadequate diet, excessive alcohol consumption and physical inactivity.

The Azores have the capacity to respond to the entire path of cancer diseases, namely in terms of primary prevention, which aims to change behaviours, and in terms of secondary prevention, through screening, hospital response, chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments, and palliative care.

The Regional Health Service joined this action organised by the Union for International Cancer Control with numerous activities initiatives aimed at promoting primary cancer prevention, through the adoption of healthy lifestyles as well as adherence to screening programmes.

This morning, the Island Health Units and hospitals carried out, among other initiatives, the "Move against Cancer" initiative directed to its users and family members. It included a brief introduction to cancer prevention and screening as well as a moderate physical activity session.

The Regional Directorate for Prevention and Control of Dependencies will disseminate this week prevention messages among the school community and through Rádio Atlântida (radio station), a partner of the Regional Forum on Alcohol and Health.

With the same goal, the Azores Oncology Centre and the São Miguel Island Health Unit will participate in the Açores Hoje programme, which will be broadcast on RTP Açores on February 6 from 5 pm.