Brava: Men call for prostate cancer screening on the island

The appeals were made publicly during an open conversation dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of early diagnosis, held this afternoon by the municipality, in partnership with the Health Precinct.

For the participants, distance and the cost of travel continue to be critical barriers to accessing essential care, which is why, they argued, the implementation of the service in the municipality itself would represent a significant advance in the prevention and monitoring of men's health.

In statements to Inforpress, the spokesperson for the participants, Carlos Gabriel, said that the event was of great importance and it would be good if it were repeated more often, because there are people who don't even know that this disease exists.

He pointed out that, because they are from Brava, they know that access to health care on the island is very difficult, unless specialists come from abroad or patients travel to the island of Fogo for a consultation.

"I've already had this test, yes, but outside of my island. In this sense, I think it would be a huge step forward to have specialists here so that the exam can be carried out on the Brava. What's the point of raising awareness if we don't have doctors to carry out the tests?" he asked.

Mayor Amândio Brito explained that the initiative, promoted in close cooperation with the local Health Department, is an opportunity created precisely to give men access to information, so that they can then feel sensitized and, as a result, decide on an attitude that is productive for good health.

According to the same source, the municipality is concerned about the health of its residents, women's health, but also men's health, and this logic follows on from what is the intended institutional relationship.

"Statistics prove that men seek health less. So this is an important part that we have to take into account, because now we have to work on a second stage," he stressed.

The second stage, he concluded, will serve to liaise with the health structures, so that a specialist technician can travel to the island and allow men to have access to the consultation.

Inforpress/End