Indonesian MoH Offering Mammogram Tests in 514 Regencies and Cities in a Bid to Prevent Breast Cancer

JAKARTADAILY.ID – Indonesian Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin said that the Ministry of Health will offer mammogram tests in 514 regencies in a bid to prevent and detect breast cancer. 

Minister of Health Budi said the type of cancer that caused the most deaths in women was breast cancer. Early detection is the most appropriate way to prevent the occurrence of the disease.

''Cancer is better detected early, not detected after stage 3 or 4. The easiest detection is Sadanis (clinical breast examination) and Sadari (breast self-examination). But the WHO standard is to use a mammogram (test),'' said Minister of Health Budi at the breast screening Pinkwalk event, Sunday, October 9, 2022, in Jakarta.

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The availability of mammogram testing equipment in Indonesia is still low compared to Australia and Thailand. Of the 3,000 hospitals in Indonesia, only 200 hospitals have mammograms.

Minister of Health Budi said the government had committed that by 2024 all provincial hospitals in Indonesia would be equipped with mammograms.

''From our 514 regencies/cities, less than 100 regencies/cities have mammograms. 80 percent of Indonesian women cannot detect breast cancer,'' said the Minister of Health.

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''I will make sure that in 2024 there will be mammograms in 514 regencies/cities. The most important thing is to live a healthy life,'' said Minister of Health Budi in a press release.