Europa Donna Malta – a Breast Care Support Group committed to raising awareness about breast cancer and breast health, in collaboration and with the support of OYSHO brand of female intimate wear will be hosting the annual

Walk to commemorate Breast Health Day on Sunday 13th October 2013. The walk will start from the Pjazza in The Point at 10.00am and will finish off in St George’s Square Valletta at around 11.30am. Registrations for this walk will open at 9.30am against a donation of €5.

Europa Donna Malta is the Maltese forum of Europa Donna, the European Breast Cancer Coalition. In Malta, the Group works to raise awareness about breast cancer and also offers support to people affected by the disease.

“The average 5 year survival rate among European women, between 1995 and 1999 was 79.50% which shows that awareness and early screening can save lives. In Malta, between October 2009 and July 2013, 46,000 women were invited for breast screening, of whom 27,000 accepted the invitation and 193 were found to have cancer. This means that 193 women and their families were saved from the trauma of finding the cancer at an advanced stage and that treatment will be less drastic with greater chances of survival,” explains Gertrude Abela, President of Europa Donna Malta.

Ms Abela added “lack of information and fear are still main factors that are fuelling the figures of cancer victims, especially breast cancer. From our contact with people, we find that fear plays a major role in whether women decide to go for cancer screening or not. Many still fail to understand that breast screening can detect cancer in the early stages when treatment is most effective and so is to be encouraged, not avoided,” added Ms Abela.

“We are proud to be associating Oysho with this awareness event and we are pledging our full support to ensure its success,” said Annabelle Gauci from Oysho. “Oysho is a unique female brand that celebrates femininity and respects the intimacy and the unique traits of every individual woman. Our tag line ‘Love Yourself’ is very much in line with the spirit of this awareness campaign that will seek to encourage women to love themselves a bit more by considering giving more attention to the risks of breast cancer,” added Ms Gauci.

During the Breast Health Day walk, all participants will be carrying different colour silhouettes in solidarity with all those people currently experiencing this cancer journey. Pink will represent the incidence of breast cancer, White will be for those who sadly have succumbed to this disease and Blue will be for men who can also incur breast cancer.

The causes of breast cancer are still not fully understood, and incidence is increasing. However, treatment has improved considerably and more and more women are surviving breast cancer. Regular self-examinations and other breast checks are important. And women can reduce their risk of breast cancer by maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol intake and staying physically active. Europa Donna Malta’s message is clear – be breast aware!