Breast cancer is the most common cancer overall as well as the most common malignancy afflicting women in Jordan. According to the latest statistics from the Jordan National Cancer Registry, 674 females and 10 males were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, accounting for 18.6% of the total new cancer cases. Breast cancer ranked first among cancer in females, accounting for 36.2% of all female cancers, and is the leading cause of cancer deaths among Jordanian women.
Breast cancer poses an important health issue in Jordan for the following reasons :
- 70% of breast cancer cases in the country are presented at advanced stages (III-IV) during which survival rates are low and the disease is less curable and only 30% of cases are diagnosed in early stages (0-II). This is a reverse statistic in the West. Therefore, even though the incidence of breast cancer in Jordan is lower than incidence in Western countries, the mortality rate is very high due to late presentation of the disease;
- Jordanian women are afflicted with breast cancer at a much younger age (median age is 49) than women in Western countries (median age is 65), when they are still raising children, caring for their families, and contributing to the growth and development of society;
- Survival rates and the early detection of breast cancer are directly connected; yet unfortunately, public awareness in Jordan regarding this fact is minimal and inadequate;
- Treatment of patients when breast cancer is at its earlier stages is generally less expensive and more successful than treatment during later stages of the disease;
- Incidence rates are increasing at 3% per year, and thus, in a society in which 50% of our population is under the age of 18 years old, the issue of breast cancer awareness needs to be addressed now lest it become uncontainable in the years to come when the population begins to age.
