First Lady launches project on HIV, breast and cervical cancer, Daily Graphic

 The First Lady, Mrs Lordina Dramani Mahama, has called on women to go for regular check-ups for early detection and prevention of HIV and AIDS, breast and cervical cancer.
“Every woman must check her breast for lumps each month. If you find a lump, see a doctor immediately, and every woman must be examined by a doctor or a nurse to make sure that her cervix is normal” she stated.
She described these diseases as serious health problems which needed to be properly addressed to avoid implications on the economic development of the country.
The OAFLA project
Launching the Organisation of African Ladies against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA) project at Koforidua, Mrs Mahama stated that the wellbeing and reproductive health of women and the prevention of HIV among children must be a priority for African countries.
The event brought together chiefs, queens, politicians, religious leaders and health personnel and civil society organisations in the Eastern Region.
The First Lady, as part of the project, will spearhead the mobilisation of Ghanaians, educate communities and advocate more attention and resources to reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV, breast and cervical cancers in Ghana.
The initiative, being implemented on a pilot basis in the Eastern, Brong Ahafo and the Northern regions, is also targeted at empowering women to take charge of their reproductive health needs by creating awareness, providing prevention education as well as screening outreaches for breast and cervical cancer to improve the quality of life of women.
The residents Of Oyoko in the New Juaben municipality in the Eastern Region were screened for HIV, syphilis, cervical and breast cancer, and other medical conditions.
HIV/AIDS
The First Lady stated that the transmission of HIV from mothers to their infants contributed substantially to global morbidity and mortality for children under-five years of age.
“The prevention of mother to child transmission is the key to a generation free of HIV”, she stated.
Mrs Mahama pointed out that fortunately prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV could be accomplished by effective, accessible and scalable interventions within the existing maternal and child health services which were available in health facilities.
“Without diagnosis and treatment, about 30 per cent of HIV-infected pregnant women will transmit HIV to their children”, she lamented.
Mrs Mahama therefore appealed to municipal and district chief executives as well as political and opinion leaders to help enact and effectively implement laws that would protect the sexual and reproductive rights of women.
“Let us use our political influence to draw together resources to improve health and well-being of our women”, she appealed, and challenged opinion leaders to also help mobilise resources towards the attainment of an HIV free society.
The Minister of Health, Mrs Sherry Ayittey, stated that over 2,300 new HIV infections were averted in children in 2012 through the PMTCT, quoting the National HIV Prevalence and AIDS Estate Report.
She added: “There has been increased treatment coverage for persons living with HIV, and currently 70 per cent of those in need of anti-retroviral drugs are receiving medication.”
The Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Dr Angela El-Adas, commended the OAFLA project team for selecting and implementing the initiative in the Eastern Region, which continued to record the highest HIV prevalence rate of