Shaniera Akram spreads awareness about breast cancer

KARACHI: October is breast cancer awareness month around the globe. In respect of the campaign and to spread awareness about the illness, Shaniera Akram spoke to her followers on Instagram about breast cancer. In a society where talking about women’s bodies and issues are a great taboo and even the word breast is sexualised, Akram uploaded a picture of a bra to address the problem.

“Did you know that Pakistan has the highest rate of breast cancer than other Asian countries with a diagnosis of over 90,000 women every year! Statistics show that an alarming 1 in every 9 women will develop breast cancer at some stage,” she wrote.

Akram went on to remind her followers how important it is to remove the stigma attached with the illness and play our part in spreading awareness. “This month is #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth #PinkOctober and as a nation of strong women, we need to work together to spread more awareness and destroy the stigma attached to this cancer in order to save lives. So that’s why I am posting a pic of my bra in hope to get more attention directed to how important it is to get checked and be #breastaware! I respect our culture and values but for those who are not quiet mature enough to handle me posting a pic of my bra, I want to remind you it’s only a piece of clothing, everyone wears one, even your grandmothers!”

She continued, “Let’s get real people, over 40,000 women die every year because we don’t have proper screening centres, are not testing regularly and certainly don’t have enough awareness about breast cancer, that’s why it’s up to us, to spread the word. We are proud to be women and knowing our bodies is so important to us all. We have the power to detect early stages of breast cancer and we can save our own lives by doing so.

So to help spread awareness this October encourage your mother, sister, grandmother, aunties, friends and daughters to be #BreastAware! Don’t wait till it’s too late, go online and follow the instructions to give yourself a quick #breastCheck, know what to look for and encourage friends and family to do the same. But most of all make sure if it’s been over 2 years, book an appointment with your doctor for an examination!” Akram urged her readers.

Local celebrities other than Shaniera Akram have also come forward to talk about breast cancer and encourage women to go for screenings and have healthy conversations regarding the topic.