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West hospital hosts a Pink Drive
The Pretoria West District Hospital and the metro’s health team recently hosted free health screenings for locals using the Pink Drive mobile truck.
The drive took place on September 5 and provided critical cancer screening services to residents, particularly in areas that lack access to mammography services.
It is estimated that one in every 28 South African women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, according to the Cancer Association of South Africa (Cansa).
Initiatives such as these reportedly assist with early detection, enabling healthcare staff to effectively treat patients and increase survival rates.
The event also included pap smears, clinical breast examinations, and PSA testing, offering comprehensive cancer screening for both men and women.
Stephina Ramabulana, a qualified mammographer and head of the x-ray unit at the hospital said she was pleased with the turnout. She believes that it is important that marginalised communities have access to these services.
“The turnout was overwhelming. It shows just how much our community needs access to cancer screening services, especially mammograms. We were limited to 25 mammograms due to equipment constraints, but we managed to push for 27. The demand is clear, and events like these are crucial in bringing these services to those who otherwise wouldn’t have access,” Ramabulana said.
Screenings such as pap smears and PSA tests for prostate cancer in men over 40 can help identify potentially life-threatening cancers at an early stage when treatment is most effective.
“We’ve realised that there is a need for this, in the community we don’t have an x-ray machine used to check for breast cancer. We keep educating patients about the importance of breast self-examinations to encourage the community to keep doing them. Even if you’re at home without access to facilities you can still check for cancer once a month,” Ramabulana said.
Clinical manager, Dr Lucy Mashaba said the hospital cannot over-emphasise the need for screenings as breast and prostate cancer are affecting too many lives.
“These are the two top cancers causing morbidity and mortality in the community so we really want to encourage residents to go and screen regularly. All Tshwane hospitals are able to assist in this regard and if needs be referrals can be made for further testing,” Dr Mashaba said.
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