The percentage of Bulgarian women with breast cancer have doubled over the last twenty years, doctors warned, adding that more often than not the disease is detected in a tragically late stage.
Nearly 2,000 breast cancer patients were registered in the 1980s and their number grew to 3,548 in 2004, shows the gloomy statistics, which leading oncologists cited at a press conference.
The decease is terminal when it is detected too late, which is the case in one third of the patients.
Monthly breast self-examinations for possible lumps and breast changes were recommended especially for women over 40.
More than 38,000 Bulgarian women are currently diagnosed with breast cancer, which claims the most lives among oncological deceases. The greatest number of breast cancer cases have been registered in the capital Sofia and the Central Bulgarian town of Gabrovo.
A number of initiatives were undertaken in Bulgaria in the last few years in a bid to raise awareness of the decease and ways to prevent it.