Latest News
Today is World Cancer Day and BCAC is backing the global campaign to reduce the stigma associated with cancer and dispel myths about it.
Each year around 7.6 million people worldwide die from cancer and World Cancer Day aims to help prevent deaths by raising awareness and improving education about the disease.
BCAC chair, Libby Burgess, says it’s an important day to acknowledge that we can all do something to help prevent cancer by educating others about the disease.
“All too often, people are not aware of the signs and symptoms of cancer, or they’re not aware of screening programmes to help detect the disease or new medicines to help treat the disease.
BCAC is thrilled to see the country’s free breast screening programme, BreastScreen Aotearoa, is now fully digital.
The move was announced by the Associate Minister of Health, Jo Goodhew, today, who said it was a “significant milestone in the Government’s commitment to improved technology and access to high quality breast screening services”.
BCAC chairperson, Libby Burgess, says the move from x-ray film to digital images it is a big step forward.
A new report highlights the need for clinicians to be more willing to treat older women with breast cancer with chemotherapy to ensure they experience the best possible health outcomes.
The “Breast Cancer in the Elderly” report published in the journal, Future Oncology, says elderly patients are often not treated with chemotherapy or are treated less aggressively.
BCAC chair, Libby Burgess, says anecdotally BCAC is aware of healthy elderly women who have not received the same level of care as their younger counterparts.
The coming year will be a challenging one for breast cancer physicians and researchers as new figures show that the number of breast cancer cases worldwide is on the rise.
The World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recently released the latest global statistics on cancer incidence, mortality and prevalence.
It shows that the number of cancer cases worldwide rose to 14.1 million in 2012 and highlights a dramatic increase in breast cancer cases.
BCAC is calling for breast cancer survivors to put themselves forward as candidates for membership of the Health Quality & Safety Commission’s Consumer Network to help improve health and disability care in New Zealand.
The Commission is the government agency charged with ensuring that all New Zealanders receive the best health and disability care within available resources.
It has a dedicated Consumer Network as part of its commitment to consumers being actively involved in decision-making about health and disability services, including governance, planning and policy development.
BCAC chair, Libby Burgess, says consumers have a valuable contribution to make to any efforts to improve the health system.
The new dragon boat paddling season kicked off early in November and the Pink Dragons are all set for some hard training ahead. Some kept up their paddling enthusiasm throughout the winter with Sunday training whilst others kept up their fitness in other ways and took a well earned break from paddling.
Last season ended on a high with the ‘Pinkies’ winning a much prized gold medal and several other medals at the Regional Championships and Nationals. Some of the team also volunteered to collect for Pink Ribbon collection day in October, an event they are always happy to support.
Breast cancer survivors taking aromatase inhibitors (AIs) such as anastrozole, letrozole, and exemestane experienced a reduction in joint pain if they exercise while on treatment, according to results presented at the 2013 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, which is currently underway.
Five years of AI use after surgery or other primary treatment is recommended for postmenopausal women diagnosed with stages 1-3 hormone receptor-positive breast cancers, which account for nearly 70 percent of all newly diagnosed breast cancer cases.
UPDATE 2023: Please note that this treatment is now no longer privately available in New Zealand and is still not available in the public system.
BCAC is pushing for the public health system to introduce ‘intraoperative radiotherapy’ for women with low risk early breast cancer.
Intraoperative radiotherapy has recently been introduced to New Zealand, but is currently only available to eligible patients who pay for the treatment privately.
The 10th Australasian Lymphology Association Conference will be held in Auckland, New Zealand in April next year.
Entitled “Koru: life, growth, movement” the conference will take place from 3-5 April 2014.
The organisers are aiming to provide an innovative, thought provoking and quality three day Conference programme. In addition to the highly successful workshops and papers of the past, they are looking forward to a number of interactive and lively panel debates around contemporary issues.
There will also be a “Public & Consumer Day” on Saturday 5 April 2014. If you or someone you know is living with lymphoedema then this day is for you.
Key note speakers include Margaret McNeely and Stéphane Vignes.
More women choose to bare all and change the conversation about mastectomy and breast reconstruction
More women have come forward to bare their breasts with fellow breast cancer survivor, Nic Russell, in an effort to demystify mastectomy and breast reconstruction.
A friend of BCAC, Nic Russell, recently posted pictures of herself topless online in order to celebrate the gift of life that comes from the decision to have a mastectomy.
She invited fellow breast cancer survivors to do the same and now three Auckland women have come forward and are having topless photos of themselves taken over the coming week. Another two women from elsewhere in New Zealand have also indicated that they want to participate.
