AirLink Ambulance joins the fight against breast cancer

Together for early detection of breast cancer

On the 26th of October AirLink’s flight physician Dr. Miguel Cortés gave a presentation on breast cancer with a one mission: spreading the positive impact of prevention and raise awareness about self-examination and routine medical checkups. Dr. Cortés seeks to generate information so that together we can achieve early detection of this disease. He also mentions that it is important to share good information from various sources, including schools and universities.

Because it is important?

Dr. Cortes explains that there are different risk factors, some that we cannot modify, such as the simple fact of being a woman and therefore being more likely to have breast cancer. But there are others that do, such as leading a healthy life, not drinking alcohol in excess, or smoking. He points out that it is important to inform young women – from the age of 14 or 15 – about what breast cancer is and how to detect it early.

Every year there are 1,380 million new cases and about 500 thousand deaths in the world. In Mexico, for every 100,000 women 20 years of age or older, 35.2 new cases were reported, with 17.1 deaths per 100,000 women over 20 years of age. Early detection can play a very important role in the prognosis of this disease. One in 10 Mexican women will suffer from breast cancer at some stage of her life.

What can we do?

First of all, it is recommended to lead a healthy life that includes a balanced diet and frequent exercise. For early detection, women should do a monthly breast self-examination, annual check-up with a gynecologist, and perform a mammogram and ultrasound.