14. Building Breast Cancer Awareness in Jordan

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women and the leading cause of cancer deaths in women globally, with outcomes that are drastically different based purely on where you happen to live. What's fascinating is how much this challenge isn't just a medical one, but is deeply entangled with social factors, cultural norms, and economics. Salma Jaouni Araj shares how the Jordan Breast Cancer Program implements early detection to reduce deaths from breast cancer and address personal beliefs and family situations that are silent, invisible barriers to screening and treatment.References:Ellington TD, Henley SJ, Wilson RJ, Miller JW, Wu M, Richardson LC. Trends in breast cancer mortality by race/ethnicity, age, and U.S. Census region, United States- 1999–2020. Cancer. 2023;129(1):32–38.Alkhaifi S, Padela AI, Hodge F, Brecht M. Breast cancer screening among immigrant Muslim arab women in the United States: Analyzing relationships between beliefs, knowledge, spousal support and mammogram utilization. Journal of the National Medical Association. 2023.American Cancer Society. Breast Cancer Facts and Figures 2024-2025. Atlanta: American Cancer Society; 2024.Global Breast Cancer Initiative Implementation Framework: assessing, strengthening and scaling-up of services for the early detection and management of breast cancer. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2023.Wilkinson L, Gathani T. Understanding breast cancer as a global health concern. Br J Radiol. 2022;95:20211033.Kim J, Harper A, McCormack V, et al. Global patterns and trends in breast cancer incidence and mortality across 185 countries. Nature Medicine. Published online February 24, 2025.US Preventive Services Task Force. Summary of USPSTF Final Recommendation: Screening for Breast Cancer. April 2024.Agide FD, Sadeghi R, Garmaroudi G, Tigabu BM. A systematic review of health promotion interventions to increase breast cancer screening uptake: from the last 12 years. Eur J Public Health. 2018;28(6):1149-1155.