Breast cancer and cervical cancer, respectively, are the highest cancer cases in Indonesia. This phenomenon indicates that Indonesian women still don’t have adequate awareness and knowledge about both cancers because they can be detected early. HPV vaccination can also prevent cervical cancer.
Responding to the saddening fact, SCORA CIMSA UI held Bravest (Breast and Cervical Cancer Awareness Month) from the 1st to the 24th of October 2020. Bravest also correlates with the Breast Cancer Awareness Month celebration, which is celebrated every October. Bravest consists of online campaigns and webinar-talkshow as the main project. To raise awareness and knowledge of social media users, we prepared educational content about breast and cervical cancer, regarding their etiologies, risk factors, common symptoms, and ways to detect them early. The contents are published on our Instagram, @cimsaui. The online campaigns also emerge as fun and engaging Instagram stories, such as Myth or Fact, Word Search, and True or False about breast and cervical cancer. To commemorate cancer warriors and survivors, we also held a twibbon challenge to express support and kind messages.
The webinar session, titled “Let’s Know and Detect Breast and Cervical Cancer,” brings two speakers with expertise in breast oncology and gynecological oncology. The first speaker of the session is Dr. dr. Tofan Widya Utami, SpOG(K), a staff Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology FKUI-RSUPN Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo. She brought a wholesome presentation about cervical cancer and the technologies concerning prevention and early detection. The second speaker of the session is dr. Bob Andinata, SpB(K)Onk, the Head of Early Detection Division in Dharmais Cancer Hospital, Jakarta, and a member of The Indonesian Society of Surgical Oncology (PERABOI). He presented a thorough presentation about breast cancer and early detection of it–breast self-exam, clinical breast exam, and imaging technologies to confirm the diagnosis. The moderator for the webinar is Nathalia Isabella Muskitta, S.Ked, Vice National Officer on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights including HIV and AIDS SCORA CIMSA 2019-2020. She leads the session and the QnA sessions afterward.
The talkshow session focuses on the narration of a breast cancer’s survivor. The speaker for the session is Evilin Kumala, a breast cancer survivor from LovePink Indonesia. A moderator, Gabrielle Adani (Local Officer on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights including HIV and AIDS CIMSA UI 2020-2021) leads the session and accompanies the speaker. Evilin shared her story when she received the diagnosis, the treatments, and her coping mechanisms. “When I was stuck in the dark, a fellow warrior said to me that this too shall pass,” said Evilin, “The phrase runs deep within me. I learned that we have full control of our mind and body, and I managed to perform mindfulness.”
As the webinar-talkshow closing, we announced the twibbon challenge’s winner and their messages to cancer survivors. We also managed to take screenshots of all participants of the event. To assess the event’s impact, all participants are urged to fill the pretest and post-test, as the requirements to achieve the e-certificate. We sincerely hope that Bravest webinar session can enlighten our participants’ awareness and knowledge about breast and cervical cancer and help them develop a habit of breast self-exam and attending pap smear.
