Creatives Oct-Nov 2019

An Interview with Dr Samina Khokher
An Expert on Breast Cancer
Introduction
Dr Samina Khokher, MBBS, FCPS, PhD
Dr Samina Khokher topped Lahore Board in FSc and graduated from King Edward Medical
College in 1982. She chose to specialize in General Surgery and qualified FCPS in 1987.
Later she had training in Plastic Surgery from Malmo General hospital Sweden and took
Breast Surgery as Super speciality. She was awarded the first PhD in Surgery by University of
Health Sciences Lahore for research on Breast Cancer. Currently she is practicing as “Breast
Surgeon” at Faisal Hospital Lahore and is actively involved in the Breast Cancer awareness
activities in the various educational institutions.
What is Breast Cancer, in the view of an expert?
In simple terms, cancer is the uncontrolled growth and spread of cells in any part of the body.
So, to be specific, breast cancer is the development of cancer in the breast. It can develop
in women at any age after the age of 18. Maximum number of women are affected between
40 to 50 years in Pakistan. Breast cancer consists of four stages: In the first, it is barely even
there and with treatment it is easy to completely eradicate. In stage two, it has increased
in size but still there are high chances of cure with treatment. With the correct treatment,
it can be cured and the patient can make a full recovery. In the third stage, however, it has
spread locally in the breast and also to the armpits. At this stage the chancestage chance of
full recovery is less. In the fourth stage the cancer has spread beyond the breast to any other
part of the body, like lungs, liver or bones and chances of cure are negligible. All we can do at
this stage is to ease the patient and relieve them of pain. We help them as much as we can to
help them live the remainder of their lives surrounded by their family and friends in a happy
environment.
At what age should girls be educated about breast cancer awareness and begin
evaluations?
As breast cancer starts to appear at the age of eighteen, girls should be made aware of it
around this age. They should be instructed on how to examine themselves once in a while,
as well as when to go to get a professional opinion. It is safe to get clinical evaluation once
every three years, and self-examination once every month till the age of 40 years. Advanced
countries like America and England have developed a system called ‘screening’ which is
based on periodic X-Ray of breasts called “Mammography” and this contributes greatly to
the early diagnosis of breast cancer.
What is the incidence rate of breast cancer in Pakistan?
Pakistan alone has the highest rate of Breast Cancer than any other Asian country as one out
of every nine women develops breast cancer in her lifetime. It is the commonest cancer in
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