Breast and cervical cancer screening in the Philippines: Challenges and steps forward

Ho, Frances Dominique V.; Arevalo, Ma Veronica Pia N.; Claro, Patricia Therese S. de; Jacomina, Luisa E.; Germar, Maria Julieta V; Dee, Edward Christopher; Eala, Michelle Ann B

doi:10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101936

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…54,58 The disparity in survival may be due to late stage at presentation, inadequate screening 59 health literacy and gendered sociocultural pressures as barriers. 60 Co et al have reported that challenges to accessing surgical care for breast cancer in the Philippines include socioeconomic and geographic disparities and the relative low number of surgeons. 61 The difference in incidence many be explained by increased cancer screening and early detection in the United States compared to the Philippines.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The disparity in survival may be due to late stage at presentation, inadequate screening 59 and access to cancer care. Ho et al recently characterized the significant challenges of women accessing breast and cervical cancer screening in the Philippines, highlighting high out‐of‐pocket costs, centralization of health resources and infrastructure in the capital, lack of organized screening programs, lower health literacy and gendered sociocultural pressures as barriers 60 . Co et al have reported that challenges to accessing surgical care for breast cancer in the Philippines include socioeconomic and geographic disparities and the relative low number of surgeons 61 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Survival of Filipino women with breast cancer in the United States

Lim,

Li,

Giannakeas

et al. 2023

Cancer Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundThe survival of women with early‐stage breast cancer varies by racial group. Filipino women with breast cancer are an understudied group and are often combined with other Asian groups. We compared clinical presentations and survival rates for Filipino and White women with breast cancer diagnosed in the United States.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study of women with breast cancer diagnosed between 2004 and 2015 in the SEER18 registries database. We compared crude survival between Filipino and White women. We then calculated adjusted hazard ratios (HR) in a propensity‐matched design using the Cox proportional hazards model.ResultsThere were 10,834 Filipino (2.5%) and 414,618 White women (97.5%) with Stage I–IV breast cancer in the SEER database. The mean age at diagnosis was 57.5 years for Filipino women and 60.8 years for White women (p < 0.0001). Filipino women had more high‐grade and larger tumors than White women and were more likely to have node‐positive disease. Among women with Stage I–IIIC breast cancer, the crude 10‐year breast cancer‐specific survival rate was 91.0% for Filipino and 88.9% for White women (HR 0.81, 95% CI 0.74–0.88, p < 0.01). In a propensity‐matched analysis, the HR was 0.73 (95% CI 0.66–0.81). The survival advantage for Filipino women was present in subgroups defined by age of diagnosis, nodal status, estrogen receptor status, and HER2 receptor status.ConclusionIn the United States, Filipino women often present with more advanced breast cancers than White women, but experience better breast cancer‐specific survival.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Survival of Filipino women with breast cancer in the United States

Lim,

Li,

Giannakeas

et al. 2023

Cancer Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…1 In 2020, breast and cervical cancers are the top 2 leading malignancies affecting Filipino women, most of whom have been diagnosed at advanced stages. 2 A metaanalysis reports that 26 out of 100 females may be diagnosed with breast cancer in the Philippines. The DOH website cites the 2020 data from the Global Cancer Observatory, showing breast cancer as the leading cause of cancers and the third leading cause of cancer deaths among Filipinos.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cytotoxic and Apoptotic Properties of the Flavonoid-rich Ethyl Acetate Fraction of the Crude Methanol Leaf Extract of Syzygium samarangense (Blume) Merr. (Myrtaceae) against MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells

2022

Acta Med Philipp

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the Philippines and about 3 in every 100 Filipina will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. There is a need to discover safe, yet inexpensive herbal extracts with potential cytotoxic properties as potential treatment modalities to treat breast cancer.Objectives. This study seeks to explore the cytotoxic and apoptotic properties of the ethyl acetate fraction of the defatted crude methanol leaf extract of Syzygium samarangense in MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines.Methods. Screening for flavonoids of the extracts was performed using TLC, total flavonoids, total phenols, FTIR and LC-MS spectroscopy. The hydrogen peroxide and ferric reducing anti-oxidant power were used as substrates to assess in vitro anti-oxidative properties of the extracts. The MTT dye viability assay was used to assess the cytotoxic properties of the extracts against MCF-7 cells. Apoptotic properties of the extracts in MCF-7 cells were determined by caspase-3 activation assay, DNA fragmentation patterns and fluorescence microscopy after annexin-V and propidium iodide staining.Results. The abundance of flavonoids in the ethyl acetate fraction of the crude methanol leaf extract was established by TLC, FTIR, LC-MS/MS, total flavonoid and total phenol analyses. The in vitro anti-oxidative properties of this extract was comparable to ascorbic acid. The median inhibitory concentration (IC 50 ) of this extract in MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines was 7.2 mcg/mL while doxorubicin registered an IC 50 of 1.2 mcg/mL. At this concentration, the extract was not cytotoxic to normally-dividing breast epithelial cells. Cytotoxicity of the extract was mediated via apoptosis as demonstrated by DNA fragmentation, caspase-3 activation and fluorescence microscopic analyses. Conclusion.The study shows that the flavonoid-rich ethyl acetate fraction of the crude methanol leaf extract of S. samarangense possesses potent apoptotic and cytotoxic properties against MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines at low concentrations.

show abstract

“…8,11 Although a social health insurance program exists, covered services remain primarily limited to inpatient, curative services. 12 While private health insurance may be available to some employees, this remains at the discretion of employers and often offers minimal benefits. As a result, over 50% of patients' total health expenditure is out-of-pocket.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Palliative and Supportive Care in the Philippines: Systems, Barriers, and Steps Forward

Luna

Cubarrubias

et al. 2023

J Palliat Care

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although integral to alleviating serious health-related suffering, global palliative care remains systemically and culturally inaccessible to many patients living in low- and middle-income countries. In the Philippines, a lower-middle income country in Southeast Asia of over 110 million people, up to 75% of patients with cancer suffer from inadequate pain relief. We reviewed factors that preclude access to basic palliative care services in the Philippines. PubMed and Google Scholar were searched thoroughly; search terms included but were not limited to “palliative care,” “supportive care,” “end-of-life care,” and “Philippines.” We found that a limited palliative care workforce, high out-of-pocket healthcare costs, and low opioid availability all hinder access to palliative care in the archipelago. Religious fatalism, strong family-orientedness, and physician reluctance to refer to palliative care providers represent contributory sociocultural factors. Efforts to improve palliative care accessibility in the country must address health systems barriers while encouraging clinicians to discuss end-of-life options in a timely manner that integrates patients’ unique individual, familial, and spiritual values. Research is needed to elucidate how Filipinos—and other global populations—view end-of-life, and how palliative care strategies can be individualised accordingly.

show abstract

Breast and cervical cancer screening in the Philippines: Challenges and steps forward

Cited by 8 publications

References 16 publications

Survival of Filipino women with breast cancer in the United States

Survival of Filipino women with breast cancer in the United States

Cytotoxic and Apoptotic Properties of the Flavonoid-rich Ethyl Acetate Fraction of the Crude Methanol Leaf Extract of Syzygium samarangense (Blume) Merr. (Myrtaceae) against MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells

Palliative and Supportive Care in the Philippines: Systems, Barriers, and Steps Forward

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About