All is set for the Ulinzi Walk on Breast Cancer to be held in Kigali aimed at awareness, education, empowerment, treatment, support and research on breast cancer.
This year’s campaign will start and end on Saturday, October 20 at Radisson Bleu Convention Center in Nyarutarama, from 08: 30 am to midday, )local hours.
It is the 6th edition which is organised annually by the Breast Cancer Initiative East Africa Inc. (BCIEA), the nonprofit breast cancer advocacy organization registered in Texas, USA and in Kigali, Rwanda.
The organization is committed to ensuring that nobody suffers or dies from breast cancer because of ignorance, stigma or lack of awareness about the disease to guarantee that patients do not face breast cancer fearfully and helplessly alone.
The True Story
BCIEA was founded by Philippa Kibugu-Decuir, a 23 year breast cancer survivor and a Texan educator with 28 years of teaching experience in a move to protest against the prevalent late stage breast cancer presentations associated with poverty, ignorance and lack of awareness in East Africa where 87% of these late stage cases resulted in death.
After losing her sister to advanced breast cancer (liver metastasis) and her own survival from her diagnosis, Philippa wondered whether one lives determines if she lives or survives breast cancer.
Mabel, the sister to Philippa lived in Lubumbashi where there were no cancer treatment facilities or specialists, In fact doctors did not know what ailed her and she had to be flown to a London hospital where she died in 1986.
When Philippa got her diagnosis she lived in Houston, Texas and received state of art treatment from a multi-disciplinary group of excellent doctors; including psychosocial, emotional and spiritual support systems and she survived.
As Philippa believes that every breast cancer patient deserves the same opportunity she had, it is this mindset plus the unexplainable energy that only a survivor understands and the will to honor her sister that compelled Philippa to create Breast Cancer Initiative East Africa Inc.
Since then, BCIEA has been promoting breast cancer awareness, education and early detection in Rwanda since 2008 and has directly impacted and educated close to 10,000 people in Rwanda in that period and accessed more through billboard, phone and display advertising campaigns and its annual Ulinzi Walk.
Philippa has since expanded her work to education of residents and even refugees in Houston, Texas and works tirelessly to increase breast care awareness and education with a dream that she will live to see the cure.
Recently, Philippa has met First lady Jeannette Kagame in Kigali for BCIEA presentation on its activities in Rwanda.
The participation fees in the Ulinzi Walk on Breast Cancer Awareness that will be held in Kigali on October 20, are Rwf 10,000 with a T-Shirt, Rwf 5,000 and Rwf 2,500 for students.
Philippa beleives that. : ” Breast Cancer Is Everyone Business ” !
Follow Breast Cancer Initiative East Africa (BCIEA) on Twitter
The Express News
