See the webcast of Public Forum 2009
Breast Cancer: Challenges After Treatment
Westmead BCI's 2009 Breast Cancer Public Forum was held on Tuesday 27th of October at 8pm EST. There was a live satellite broadcast across Australia from the Rural Health Education Foundation in Sydney and webcast live on the internet at the same time.
The webcast is available for viewing online at the Rural Health Education Foundation’s website.
To view the webcast you will need to log in and then click on the Live Webcast button from the Breast Cancer: Challenges After Treatment progrqam page. To log in you will need to already be registered with the Foundation (registration is free). For full instructions on how to register and access the webcast visit the Help Page of the Rural Health Education Foundation’s website.
Breast Cancer remains by far the most common cancer diagnosed in women and in 2005, made up over 27% of all cancer diagnoses. The risk of breast cancer increases with age and the average age of diagnosis is 60 years for a woman. Breast cancer is also the most common cancer experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women but the incidence is lower than for the non-indigenous population.
A woman’s risk of dying from the disease before the age of 85 has been declining steadily over the last 25 years and Australia’s mortality rates from breast cancer are lower now than rates from New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States of America.
For women there has been a significant increase in relative survival after diagnosis of breast cancer with five-year rates increasing from 71.8 % to 87.8% between 1982 and 2004. This improvement has been attributed to earlier detection through breast screening programs and advances in breast cancer treatments delivered through a multidisciplinary approach to best practice in breast cancer care.
Women face many challenges at the completion of treatment and a large proportion of these may be related to the treatment they received for their breast cancer. There can be unexpected physical and emotional changes coupled with confusion over follow-up care and worry about the future.
This public forum answered many of the frequently asked questions related to those challenges and offered strategies to assist women in gaining accurate information and access to appropriate support. The forum also explored ways in which health care professionals can assist women to find their ‘new normal’ once their treatment for breast cancer has been completed.
Forum Presenters
Host: Assoc Prof John Boyages - Director of the Westmead Breast Cancer Institute
Dr James French - Head of Breast Surgery, Westmead Hospital, Sydney NSW
Dr Tony Hobbs - General Practitioner, Cootamundra NSW
Assoc Prof Judy Kirk - Director Familial Cancer Service
Ms Louise Koelmeyer - Occupational Therapist and Lymphoedema Specialist, Westmead Hospital, Sydney NSW
Dr Nicholas Wilcken - Director Medical Oncology, Westmead Hospital, Sydney NSW
Last Updated on Thursday, 19 November 2009 12:49
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