Kumasi, April 27, GNA - Peace and Love Hospital, a breast cancer specialist facility at Oduom near Kumasi, has acquired a modern technology that makes it easier to detect breast cancer in women.

Unlike the mammogram, the use of which required the breast to be compressed and exposed to harmful radiation, the new equipment known as "The SureTouch Visual Mapping System" is a digital sensing device that allows doctors to conduct a pain and radiation-free breast examination by scanning the breast tissue.

It enables women from 18 years of age or younger to have breast examination due to its ability to detect tumours in dense breast tissue and also detect lumps through all areas of the outer aspects of the breast. The machine, which was developed in the USA and the first of its kind to be installed in West Africa also provides document management facility for medical practitioners to print, store and move images around via email and could also be used to screen women on outreach locations. Speaking at a media launch in Kumasi, on Monday, Dr Mrs Beatrice Wiafe Addai, Chief Executive of the Peace and Love hospital, said late detection of breast cancer had been the cause of the death of many women who contracted the disease and said the introduction of the machine in the country would help improve diagnostic and early detection and treatment of the disease. She said in every 68 seconds a woman dies of breast cancer in the world, adding that, early detection was very crucial in the management of the disease.

Dr Wiafe Addai said even though the treatment of breast cancer is included in the national health insurance scheme, diagnostic and detection services are not included and appealed to the National Health Insurance Authority, to consider including that aspect in the scheme to enable more women seek early diagnosis and detection of the disease. She said there was the need for continuous public awareness on the dangers of the disease since it currently affected young and productive women in society.

Dr Ian Finlayson, Chief Executive Officer of Medical Tactile Imaging of Australia and Newzealand, Manufacturers of the machine, said two years of clinical trials of "SureTouch" in the USA and funded by the National Institute of Health, has proven it is more than 94 per cent accurate in recognising malignant tumours in both dense and fatty breast tissue. He said the technology had added up to what already existed adding that, it had brought immense relief to modern medicine and women since they now needed not to be afraid of how to detect the disease. Dr Ewudzi Yeboah, Kumasi Metropolitan Director of Health Services, the government appreciated the collaboration of the private sector in health care delivery adding that, the launch of the device was a demonstration of the positive role of the private sector in health care delivery. He commended Dr Mrs Wiafe Addai for leading an unrelented crusade against breast cancer in the country. Mr Carl Wiafe, Managing Director of Corinthian Medical Systems Limited, Distributors of the machine said the Company would try to make the machine available to many women in the country by 2014. 27 April 09