The power of network… my friend Mrs. Vidya Chandrasekhar, from USA, introduced me to her friend Mrs. Bindu Goyal from Mumbai who became a collaborator with BCH. Thank you so much Mrs. Chandrasekhar & Mrs. Goyal for all your help & support! Mrs. Goyal further interacted with Mrs. Archana Deshmukh who organized the event at Geeta Bhavan, Sunder Nagar, Malad (west), Mumbai. I have no words to express my thanks to Mrs. Deshmukh for all her sincere efforts & selfless gesture.

Special thanks to  Mrs. Manju Joshi, Yoga teacher, for her huge support. My heartfelt thanks to all who attended the session.

The presentation emphasized on the current scenario of Breast Cancer in India and what are the key factors causing late diagnosis. It was a very rewarding session, since there were many questions from the audience & lot of interactions.

I was so proud of Mrs. Manjit Kaur, who came forward after my presentation, speaking up about her condition for the first time, breaking the barrier of shyness & talking about her journey. Mrs. Kaur  was diagnosed with Metastatic Breast Cancer at the age of 43 in 2016. With the help & support of her loving husband, kids, parents, in-laws, members of her  joint family, her tremendous believe in God, and her own will power, she proudly is a survivor today. I cannot even express how happy I am today for Mrs. Manjit Kaur who has gathered the courage to come forward and now she is an inspiration for all the women & men with Metastatic Breast Cancer. Hats off to Mrs. Manjit Kaur – a Hero!! Interview with Mrs. Kaur and full story & family photos will be published on BCH website.

By Lopamudra Das Roy, Ph.D
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks  to Mrs. Sandhya Das who organized the event in Kolkata at her residence. I met Mrs. Das in US at her daughter Dr. Manali Das’s residence early this year and was sharing my work on Breast cancer awareness programs I was planning to conduct in India targeting embarrassment, taboo & ignorance. I was amazed to see the eagerness in Mrs. Das to help in spreading the word. Mrs. Das not only agreed to build the network but also organized the event in Kolkata, inviting her network of friends, family and neighbors. Hats off to Mrs. Das for her initiative and understanding the grimness of this disease. Thank you for your collaboration. I would also like to thank Mrs. Shompa and Mrs. Susmita Das for helping Mrs. Sandhya Das organize the event!

I am immensely thankful to Mrs. Simi Chakraborty, Mrs. Chandrani Dutta and Mrs. Kaushiki Chakraborty for making it to the event & supporting the cause, even though they had a very busy day. Cannot thank you all enough for being on the Connectors Committee of BCH!

My utmost thanks to Ms. Susmita Naha for coming to the event in-spite of her other commitments the same evening, so grateful for being on the connectors committee of BCH! Enormously appreciative of Mrs. Shilpi Gupta for coming,  even though it was not a convenient day/time for her… so nice of her!

By Lopamudra Das Roy, Ph.D
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

http://janatacollege.in

I am so thankful to Dr. Shirtaz Begum, Assistant Prof. Dept. of Philosophy, for supporting the cause and inviting me to Janata College, Kabuganj, Assam, to talk on Breast Cancer Awareness, sincerely appreciate your thoughts & perspectives. Thanks to the Women’s cell, Janata College, Kabuganj for organizing the event. I am so thankful to Dr. Sima Ghosh, Associate Prof. & Head, Bengali Dept. and Mrs. Soma Bhattacharjee, Assistant Prof. & Head, Philosophy Dept., for giving me the long distance ride to the College & I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation on our way back & forth. I am so grateful to Dr. Sudipta Khersa, Assistant Prof. Bengali Dept., Dr. Usha Rani Sharma, Assistant Prof. Dept. of Manipuri and Dr. Munni Deb Mazumder, Assistant Prof. Dept of English & Ms. Gayotri Singha, Assistant Prof. Dept. of English  for their immense support & cooperation. My sincere thanks to the Principal, Sri. S.C Nath, for his words of encouragement and the honor. My heartfelt gratitude for the Faculties & Students who attended the session, for your kind presence & supporting the cause. Thanks to the young generation-student wing who helped organize the event along with the Faculties.

I was so enthralled to meet the students, so pleased to see their curiosity and desire to support the cause & spread the word of early detection by breaking the barrier of shyness.

Overall, a very fulfilling event, with faculties and students coming up with assurance that they will take the knowledge to their network of families, friends & society and help spread the message about early detection & convince others to come out of embarrassment & speak about Breast health.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

http://gurucharancollege.ac.in/homepage.html

I cannot express how happy I was to be invited to my own college from where I did my undergraduation (B.Sc Honors) to speak on “Sensitisation and Awareness on Breast Cancer and Taboos” organized by Kiron Sashi Women’s Cell (KSWC), G.C College. My heartfelt thanks for the honor, and all the time & efforts to organize. So thankful to my loving friend from Holy Cross School, Dr. Madhudeepa Dey, Lecturer & Guest Faculty, Assam for connecting with Dr. Madhumita Dey, President KSWC & Associate Prof. & Head, Botany Dept., who further supported the cause & invited me to come and present. Sincerely grateful Dr. Madhudeepa for your kind gesture. Sincerely appreciate the flawless execution of KSWC in organizing the seminar—Dr. Madhumita Dey, President KSWC & Associate Prof. & Head, Botany Dept; Dr. Ruma Paul, Secretary, KSWC & Associate Prof., Dept. of Economics; Dr. Debipreeta Dutta, Organizing Secretary of the cell & Assistant Prof. Dept. of Zoology. In addition, I am thankful to Rotaract club G.C college members, Ms. Ananya Dutta, Mr. Sawmitro Roy and others for coming forward to help.

Sincerely thankful to the Principal of G.C College, Dr. Bibhash Deb, for the honor & felicitation & his kind words. I was so delighted to meet Dr. Seba Roy, Associate Prof. & Head, Dept. of Zoology, and thankful to all the Faculties and Students for their gracious presence. Thank you Dr. Debipreeta Dutta for being as loving as before, taking me back to our College days together where you showered the same affection & love being one year senior to me.

I was so enchanted to meet the students of Zoology Department, so happy to see their interest and passion to contribute altruistically to this cause. Each student can take the message forward to their own network and I was so pleased to see the eagerness on their attitude and expressions.

Finally, it was a very nostalgic moment, same place, same department, same stairs I shared with my friends and/but today they were not here with me but I was beeming with pride and privilege to be sitting with the young enthusiastic generation… the future!!! Thank you all for making me feel at home once again!

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

Blessed to be in Gurdwara! Thanks to Mr. Sandip Walia who reached out to me to conduct an awareness session in Gurdwara!

The event was organized by All Assam Sikh Youth Association (AASYA). Aasya is a youth body which comprises of both Boys and Girls wing. Aasya draws its inspiration from Sikh ideals of Sewa. Aasya is mainly focused on socio-cultural, educational, charitable evemts. Aasya regularly organizes Tree plantation drives to protect the environment. In addition, Aasya also organizes many sports and cultural activities. Aasya has been divided into five zones: Dibrugarh zone; Guwahati zone; Jorhat zone; Nagaon zone; North bank zone. Aasya Facebook page: www.facebook.com/aasyacb/ ; Twitter: www.twitter.com/aasyach/

I am so happy to be associated with Aasya and it would my privilege if we can together reach out to all zones of Aasya and their respective outreaches. Thank you so much Dimpa Kaur, Rameet Kaur, Kirandeep Kaur ad Simardeep Kaur from Aasya for coming forward to collaborate and take it forward about Breast Cancer awareness and the importance of early detection via the most simple screening processes. Sincerely appreciate the efforts of the President Mr. Mahinder Singh Khalsa, Mr. Prabhdeep Singh, Secretary and Mr Arvinder Pal Singh, Treasurer for all your work and amazing organization – AASYA.

The presentation focused on the important issues with Breast Cancer and emphasizing on early detetion which is the key via Breast self examination and other screening processes.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

The Silchar Obstetric & Gynaecological Society organized the event at Siva Sundari Narisikshasram & Ante-Natal Clinic, Silchar, Assam

My earnest thanks to Dr. Sarmistha Bhattacharya, Consultant, Obstetrician and Gynecologist, for believing in the cause and for taking the initiative and organizing the program so meticulously, inviting both the nurses and doctors.

 I was so honored that Dr. Bhattacharya invited Dr. Kumar Kanti Das (Dr. Lakhan Das), Director, Kalyani Hospital and Dr. Ravi Kannan, Director, Cachar Cancer Hospital and Research Centre to chair the talk/session. It was a great feeling for me  to receive the words of encouragement and  positive feedback from Dr. Kannan and Dr. K. K Das, whose selfless service to mankind speaks no bounds. It was also my immense privilege to have Dr. Chandra Sekhar Das (my father), Retired HOD, Silchar Medical College, Dept of Pediatrics and now Senior Consultant to be present in the audience.

Thanks to Dr. Devanjana DuttaMajumdar, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynecologist, for the generous introduction and coming for the event in-spite of a challenging situation.

My sincere thanks to all the respected doctors who have supported my viewpoints on the low survival frequency of Breast cancer and have come forward to work together to resolve this very grim and critical issue. My sincere thanks to Dr. C. S Das, Dr. Sumit Das, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Silchar Medical College & Hospital and other pediatricians coming forward to working together since they have a huge exposure to mothers bringing their kids/babies. I would sincerely like to thank Dr. Sumit Das for his collaboration!

Thanks to Mr. Sawon Roy & his colleague for having the technical aspects taken care so nicely.

I am so privileged to have Dr. Bhattacharya as a collaborator. In my interview with Dr. Bhattacharya (to be published on BCH website),  she brought up a very important point - painless lumps felt by breast self exam need to be immediately checked since many times, women ignore the lumps thinking it is not causing any pain. Great insights from Dr. Bhattacharya and the  interview will be posted on BCH website!

After the session, it was great interacting with the nurses, and I am so happy to see the eagerness within them to take forward the message of Breast self exam, spread it out within their own networks! Overall, a very fruitful session with doctors and nurses.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

http://smcassam.gov.in

Symposium on Breast Carcinoma in the Department of Pathology, Silchar Medical College, 11th August, 2018

It was my immense privilege to be invited by Dr. R. N. Chaubey, Prof & Head, Department of Pathology, Silchar Medical College to give a talk on Breast Carcinoma, special emphasis on Immunohistochemistry. All thanks to Dr. Monoj Kumar Deka, Associate Professor, Dept. of Pathology, Silchar Medical College and Consultant Pathologist at Cachar Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Silchar for his initiative and organizing the event. I am thankful to Dr. Kannan, Director, and Rajeev Kumar, Head & Scientist, Research Division, Cachar Cancer Hospital for introducing me to Dr. Deka who happened to be there at the same time when I went to meet Dr. Kannan in July 2018 at Cachar Cancer Hospital.

Thanks to Dr. Shah Alam Sheikh, Associate Professor and Dr. Momota Naiding, Associate Professor, Pathology Department for chairing the session.

I was so happy to see the interest and enthusiasm of the MD  (Post graduate) candidates in the department who came to attend the talk and the valuable interactions.

Thanks to Dr. Monoj Deka for coming forward to collaborate in research, and as he suggested, we explore the survival rate of these pathological remission cases and correlate with the grade, stage, hormonal status. I believe that it is very critical to understand the many aspects of Breast Cancer scenario in North East India and working together, we can come up with new interesting findings. Thanks again for your valuable collaboration!

I am also so glad that Dr. Momota Naiding, has also expressed her desire to collaborate so we can work together to explore various pathology related to Breast Carcinoma.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

Assam University, A Central University (http://www.aus.ac.in/)

I was so honored to be invited by my Ph.D mentor, Professor. Sarbani Giri, Department of Life Science & Bioinformatics to give a talk on “ Awareness on Breast Cancer, Self Diagnosis, and its implications on Women Health”. My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Giri for supporting me and the cause and organizing the event. Thanks to Prof. Supriyo Chakravorty, Dean, School of Life Sciences for gracing the occasion. I am sincerely thankful to Dr. Anirudha Giri, Professor, Dept. of Life Science and all the other Faculties, Students and Staffs from AU for joining the event & believing in the cause. I was so delighted to see my Professor from G. C College, Dr. Mitra Dey, who is now Professor at Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Assam University, attending the session.

Most importantly, I was speechless by the Research Scholars of the Department of Life Sciences, who have come forward to collaborate and take the message forward in their own provinces they come from. I am so proud of the young generation and their selfless gesture supporting the cause and coming together….My heartflet thanks to Ms. Malaya Ghosh, Ms. Pimily Langthasa, Ms. Puja Upadhaya, Ms. Sweety Nath Barbhuiya, Mr. Dharmesh Barhoi, Ms. Aparajita Das, Ms. Krishna Bhuiya, Ms. Mandira Lohar, Dr. Supriya Singh, Mr. Indranil Das, Mr. Arabinda Patar, Ms. Nijira Brahma, to name a few.

Finally, I am so thankful to Dr. Sarbani Giri for discussing the current scenario about Breast Cancer in India and bringing in very important facts. I always look upto Dr. Giri as my mentor and I feel so blessed today to get her viewpoints on this critical situation. Interview to be posted on BCH website.

By Lopamudra Das Roy, Ph.D
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

On 8th August 2018, I started early morning for Dharmagar by road, ~4.5 hours to reach Dharmanagar and ~5.5 hours to head back to Silchar on the same night. Sincerely thankful to Ms. Shilpi Roy from Blind and Handicapped association, with whom I coordinated and who helped me to do the outreach in Dharmanagar. Sincerely grateful to Mr. Tapan Kumar Bhattacharjee, Secretary of Blind and Handicapped association and all the members who came forward, organized such a wonderful event and also coming forward for collaboration. Blind and handicapped association NGO is working on Key Issues of Children, Differently Abled, Education & Literacy, Environment & Forests, Right to Information & Advocacy, Rural Development & Poverty Alleviation, Vocational Training, Women's Development & Empowerment. It is an honor to be associated so they can now take the messages forward!

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

Cachar College (http://www.cacharcollege.ac.in/) Sessions 1 & 2:

My greatest gratitude for Dr. Anitya Binode Deb, Principal-in-charge, Cachar College, who took tremendous initiative in conducting two events on 7th August, 2018. Dr. Deb and I connected many months back (post October 2017) and I was so amazed by his thoughts and was thankful to him for understanding the critical situation about Breast Cancer in India, supporting the cause and  inviting me to come and address.

The first session from 11 AM was addressed for the students of Cachar College and the second Event from 1:30 PM onwards for the Faculty & Staffs. My utmost thanks to Mr. Joydeep Biswas, Associate Professor, Department of Economics & Head, Department of Statistics, Cachar College, an inspiration for everyone, for your huge support & generous introdcution. Finally, immensely thankful to Sucheta Women’s Cell Cachar College, Silchar, Assam for organizing both the events immaculately. Extremely thankful to Dr. Padmasree Chakrabarty, Associate Professor, Department of English and Secretary, on behalf of Sucheta Women’s Cell and Dr. Alshahiba Shamsuddin, Associate Professor & Head, Department of economics for coming forward to collaborate. Cachar college has adopted a remote village where they regularly conduct health camps and now we are collaborating to work on Breast Cancer Awareness in these areas.

I am so thankful to Dr. Alshahiba Shamsuddin, Associate Professor & Head, Department of economics, who has shown interest to penetrate into the few conservative societies never tapped before so we can collaborate and work together helping to break the stigma.

Extremely thankful to the Faculty and Students of Cachar College for your gracious presence and your interest and interactions. Breast Self exam printouts accepted very nicely by the young generation and Faculty. They will spread it in their respective households and network.

My heartfelt thanks to Mrs. Aparna Sutradhar, my dear friend from college & university, for coming for the event and meet me. It was such a great pleasure!

Also, thanks to Ms. Lipi Rongmei, Matron, Girls Common Room, Cachar College, who shared her own experience, how her niece lost the battle of Breast Cancer at very young age.

Finally, extremely thankful to Cachar College and Organizers for inviting print and press media coverage & bringing the issues into limelight. Thanks to Dainik Jugashanka (8th August, 2018) edition for covering the event and mentioning about the main issues on low survival with Breast Cancer in India that I discussed during my presentation. Also, thankful to Ishaan Bangla TV media for capturing the most important aspects that I am trying to bring forward about the situation of Breast Cancer in India & supporting the cause.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

Sincerely thankful to Mr. Kamal Chakraborty, an integral part of Katha Bikalpa Parivaar along with the vibrant, thoughtful young generation for organizing the Breast Cancer Awareness event on 5th August, 2018. It was so great meeting the full team who work like a family. I am amazed to see the tremendous efforts you all are putting into various aspects of the society at such young age... hats off to you all... Katha Bikalpa Parivaaar! 

Katha Bikalpa Parivar consider themselves as not a group or organization but their alternative family. They work on social issues that need attention. They organize “Good Touch, Bad Touch” programs, give food to the poor, needy people and give clothes to them. Katha Bikalpa Parivaar also provides books for children who cannot afford to purchase. They try to stand beside the people below poverty line, provide basic clothing to children and also their admission fees for schools.

What amazed me the most during my interactions with Katha Bikalpa Parivar is their work towards environment conservation… their focus on dismissing the usage of plastics, preserving greenery by doing plantations, are other ways they are contributing relentlessly towards the development of the society.

The talk was followed by question – answer session and interactions that took the discussions into various dimensions… loved each moment spent with them…. A memorable afternoon! Katha Bikalpa Parivaar has also come forward to collaborate on the cause of Breast Cancer, and I am so looking forward to work with the dedicated young generation.

My utmost thanks to the print media, Dainik Jugoshankho and Shamayik Prashanga for supporting the cause & writing about the important aspects on Breast Cancer awareness I am trying to emphasize on their edition on 6th August, 2018 and thanks to the organizers for inviting the press.

I was also so happy to see my friend from college Akshay Nunia who came to meet me during the event...thanks so much Akshay, so great meeting you!!!

So proud of the young minds of “Katha Bikalpa Parivaar” for thinking so highly about the society. I was so honored to be amidst Katha Bikalpa Parivaar.

By Lopamudra Das Roy, Ph.D
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

My earnest thanks to Mr. Chitto Binode Deb, Proprietor, Devipore T.E

for his immense support and helping me to outreach in Kumbha/Koomber Tea Estate, Udharband circle of Cachar district in Assam. I am very thankful to Dr. Prosenjit Borah, Kumbha T.E Healthcare center, for organizing the event.

Mr. Deb introduced me to Ms. Beauty Malakar, Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) who was with me all throughout, learned the process of Breast self exam and also took the responsibility of reaching out to others in the village. She also took the accountability of helping the villagers if they came up with Breast abnormalities and giving them directions where to go next.  I met Dr. Prosenjit Borah, Medical officer at Kumbha T.E who volunteered to use the Breast self exam cards in local languages at their Health care center from now on and to give out the BSE cards to the local village communities. I also met nurses who showed immense interest and from now onwards will ask women & men  about their breast health and also give out free BSE cards.

The outreach in Kumbha/Koomber T.E was very satisfying with  interactions after. Each and everything I explained was new to them, so the session was impactful, and the response was very positive.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

My earnest regards and thanks to Mr. Chitto Binode Deb, Proprietor, Devipore Tea Estate for his incredible help and support for the cause and outreach. Devipore tea estate is situated in the Southern part of Assam, India. He started this venture in the early 90’s with a view for satisfying his own passion and creating a platform for the localities to earn their daily bread and butter. Mr. Deb collaborated with BCH and volunteered in raising awareness within the community and society in local language, breaking social barriers and taboo. Because of Mr. Deb’s help, I could reach out to Devipore Tea Estate and created awareness about one’s breast health. Mr. Deb’s immense support for  BCH reflects his aspiration for service to common people. Mr. Deb has also helped me outreach in Kumbha Tea Estate, Udharband circle of Cachar district in Assam.

Mr. Deb introduced me to Ms. Beauty Malakar, Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) who was with me all throughout, learned the process of Breast self exam and also took the responsibility of reaching out to others in the village. She also took the accountability of helping the villagers if they came up with Breast abnormalities and giving them directions where to go next.  

The outreach in Devipore T.E was very satisfying with  interactions after. Each and everything I explained was new to them, so the session was impactful, and the response was very positive.

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

I am thankful to Mrs. Sweety Das who connected me to Mrs. Shipra Das, Auxiliary Nurse Midwifery (ANM), Tupkhana who helped with the outreach. I am sincerely thankful to my uncle Mr. K.S Das for accompanying me and supporting me so much.

It was a unique experience meeting the women of Tupkhana village, a very conservative population. The Breast self exam handouts in local languages were very well accepted since it is free of cost and can be done at home. Most of the women I met could never afford to go to healthcare centers for regular Breast screenings after 40/50 years and when they got the BSE handouts, they were very happy. I made sure that if they feel any abnormalities or issues, they need to consult the nurse/ANM of the healthcare center in Tupkhana village who were present during the session. In future the ANMs will address Breast self examination process to the rest of Tupkhana population.  The outreach was fruitful. Post event, the same evening a family from Tupkhana came to meet me concerned about a member’s breast health and it was really a serious issue. I was so glad they came forward.

Overall, tapping into a very conservative area like Tupkhana, the response was very positive. Even the most conservative population when explained, understand and try to come out of shyness when they know that Breast Cancer can cost life!

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

My sincere gratitude to Assam talks, UA and Prag news for understanding the importance of the cause and interviewing me after the event where I emphasized to come out of stigma and taboo and discuss openly about Breast health before it is too late. In addition, I focused on the importance of early detection and explained the screening processes.

I am extremely thankful to the print media – The Sentinel Today, 19th July, 2018 and Assam Tribune, Dainik Assam, July 20th 2018 for highlighting the topic I emphasized the most “Stigma and taboo attached to Breast Cancer should be removed” and publishing in the respective newspapers.

Digboi Outreach

I left Sivasagar, early morning by road, headed to Digboi and met Mrs. Mridula Sutradhar who is collaborating with BCH, being a teacher at Balika Vidya Mandir, Govt. High School, Digboi, Mrs. Mridula would like to create awareness among her colleagues and acquaintances. It was great meeting Mrs. Pranati Roy, even at the age of 78, Mrs. Roy was immensely interested and learned about Breast self Exam and also mentioned that she would pass the information to her daughters-in-law & others (hats off to the positivity)!

Tinsukia outreach

I am so thankful to Dr. C.S. Das (my father) for connecting me to Dr. Kirti Dey because of whom I got connected to Indian Medial Association (IMA) Tinsukia and Aditya Diagnostics. I headed to Tinsukia from Digboi on the same day for two events organized by Indian Medical Association (IMA), Tinsukia and Aditya Diagnostics and Hospitals. During the afternoon event, several women organizations were invited. During the event at night, it was an outreach for mostly all members of Rotary club members and IMA doctors. Sincerely thankful to Dr. Kirti Dey, Founder, Dey’s nursing home, Past District Governor, Rotary District 3240; Dr. M.S Konwar, President IMA Tinsukia, Senior Pediatrician; Dr. Prasant Agarwal, State Joint Secretary, IMA, working at Aditya Diagnostics & Hospitals; Dr Prerna Keshan, Obstetrician, infertility specialist, Aditya Diagnostics & Hospitals for organizing both the events.

Collaboration

Extremely grateful to Dr. Kriti Dey for coming forward to collaborate so the information can be passed on to his hospital outreach. I am also so happy and thankful to Dr. Pravakar Hazarika, Medical Officer, Pinewood Hospital, Tinsukia and to Dr. Rasmita Upadhyaya, MD Medicine, Consultant Physician in Tinsukia Apollo Clinic for their collaboration to distribute Breast self exam cards in local languages and organize occasional awareness camps in rural areas. In addition, Dr. M.S Konwar, President IMA, Tinsukia has also come forward to collaborate. Sincerely grateful to Ms. Moumita Saha, Teacher by profession, coming forward to collaborate and taking the cause forward!

My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Rishi Das, Retired Vice Principal, for all his support and help during the Tinsukia and Digboi outreach. Extremely grateful to Mrs. Subinita Dey, Past. Dist. Chairman, Inner Wheel Rotarian and Dr. Kirti Dey for the wonderful lunch with them on 18th July. My greatest thanks to Mr. Rajarshi Das and Mrs. Moumita Saha for the accommodation at night and for all their love and affection!

Overview: The Press and Media coverage in Tinsukia has helped me to reach out to the entire community (Thanks to the organizers for inviting Press). Many groups (IMA, Rotary), physicians, teachers have come forward to collaborate. The outreach was highly impactful!

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

Several Women Organizations, Tinsukia

Indian Medical Association, Tinsukia

Tinsukia Network

Digboi Network

On 17th July, 2018, I flew from Guwahati to Dibrugarh, and then headed by road for three hours to reach Amguri, Sivasagar. I am thankful to Mr. Diganta Borkakati, Co-Founder and Treasurer “Navayug” non-profit foundation for his collaboration when I reached out to him few months back from Charlotte. My earnest thanks to Mrs. Priyadarshini Dutta for connecting me to Mr. Diganta Borkakati, so thoughtful of Mrs. Dutta supporting the cause! My sincere thanks to the Navayug team for all your efforts in putting the event together so smoothly! My sincere thanks to Amguri Healthcare center for their immense support and helping in organizing the event in their Healthcare center,

My heartfelt thanks to the Navayug team for all your warmth and affection --  Mr. Lalit Konwar, Mr. Robin Gogoi, Mr. Hemanta Bhuyan, Mr. Hemanta Borkakoty, Mr. Prabal Jyoti Boruah, Mrs. Seema Saikia Borkakoty, Mrs. Anjana Hazarika, Mrs. Rimli Konwar, Mrs. Anshumala Dutta, Mrs. Monisha Sharma, Mr. Prodip Sharma, Mr. Diganta Borkakoti, and Mr. Raj Talukdar.

Navayug focuses on “Health & Family Welfare” and during my outreach, I realized that this is the first time a Breast cancer awareness program was held in Amguri and I am so thankful that because of Navayug, I could reach out to the people of Amguri.

My heartfelt thanks to my father, Dr. C.S Das for arranging the road transport and to Mr. Narayan Kanwar from Dibrugarh to drive me to all the places during my Upper Assam Outreach (17th July through 21st July) as I traveled on my own.

It was a pleasure meeting Dr Jitendra Nath Sharma Bordoloi, Retired HOD Microbiology, Assam Medical College and Mrs. Hiron Devi at Sivasagar! Cannot thank them enough for their love, affection and accommodation on 17th July night!

Overview: This was the first time a Breast Cancer Awareness program was held in a small town Amguri in Sivasagar district in Assam. I was so privileged to be able to conduct the program in collaboration with Navayug and couldn’t have done without Navayug’s immense efforts in organizing the event in Amguri Healthcare center. I received overwhelming response from people, especially women. Many women came forward to discuss their issues and realized how critical it was to take care of their Breast health. The acceptance of Breast self exam (BSE) cards in Assamese language was great. Women found the BSE cards to be very useful. A very fulfilling trip to Amguri! 

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub

I started from Guwahati, 16th July, 2018 morning on road for Shillong. I am thankful to Dr. Debashish Das, Founder, The Children’s Hospital, Shillong, also closely associated with Rotary Club, Shillong for his collaboration with Breast Cancer Hub, and in association with Inner Wheel club of Shillong, District 324  to organize the Breast Cancer Awareness event. I am thankful to Dr. Chandra Sekhar Das (my father) for connecting me to Dr. Debashish Das. We had groups of nurses from Shillong attending the session along with members of Inner wheel Rotary Club.

Extremely thankful to Dr. Neeti Singh; Ms. Shailja Saraogi; Mrs. Poonam Goenka, President, IWC;  Mrs, Anju Sabbarwal, Dr. Geeta Sarin, District ISO, IWC; Mrs. Seema Saraogi, Club Treasurer and Dr. Debashish Das for supporting the cause and arranging the event.

My sincere gratitude to Dr. C. S. Das for arranging my road transport for Guwahati, Shillong and Upper Assam outreach. My utmost thanks to Mr. Pravin Kalita, from Guwahati for driving me to all the places in Guwahati and Shillong.

It was also a pleasure meeting Dr. Debashish Das’s wonderful family, Dr. Das’s wife Mrs. Charis; His daughter Shania and Dr. Das’s mother Mrs. Prativa Das

My heartfelt thanks to Mr. Pratik Sengupta, Mrs. Mousumi Sengupta, Ms. Mishika Sengupta for all of their warmth, affection and accommodation after I returned to Guwahati from Shillong after the event on 16th July night.

Finally, I am so happy and thankful to Mrs. Geeta Sarin, Ph.D, District ISO, Inner Wheel Club, Shillong, for taking up this project and collaborating to spread the message not only in her City but all the 25 Clubs across North East India. 

By Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy
Founder & President, Breast Cancer Hub