Marathon in Damascus to raise awareness about breast cancer early detection

The city of Damascus witnessed on Friday the holding of a marathon to raise awareness about the early detection of breast cancer amid civil and youth participation.

The marathon which is held under the title of “You Are Life… Our Strength is Yours” kicked off from al-Jalaa Sports Club in Damascus and ended up at the Sheraton Hotel with artistic and recreational activities.

The marathon is organized by Ataa team (Volunteerism) as part of the national campaign to raise awareness about early detection of breast cancer, which started in October, the month of global awareness of the disease.

Head of the team, Hani al-Asali told SANA that the team organized the marathon for the second year in a row to contribute to spreading awareness of the need for early detection of breast cancer in society, mainly among young age groups.

He pointed out that a number of civil society and youth associations have participated in the marathon.

For her part, Director of the Sham Medical Complex of the Syrian Cancer Society Dr. Nada Numan expressed her satisfaction with the participation of the young age groups in the marathon due to their important role in motivating and encouraging their families and friends in order to consolidate the culture of early detection in society.

The month of October is linked to the pink color to raise global awareness of breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, with 2 million new cases worldwide in 2018, according to figures from the Global Fund for Cancer Research.

In Syria, a national campaign to raise awareness about the early detection of breast cancer coinciding with the month of global awareness of the disease provides free medical examinations and tests in dozens of health centers distributed in the provinces.