October 1 marked the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and at Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) the theme is “Living Well, Your Way”. With 20,458 women and 217 men expected to receive a diagnosis in 2023, raising awareness around the different support and resources available to help people live well with or beyond breast cancer is essential.

The theme recognises that many people struggle to ‘live well’ following a diagnosis of breast cancer and that a quality lifestyle looks different for different people.

“Living well looks different for everyone, and it is likely that people affected by breast cancer will require different types of support at different times,” said BCNA CEO Kirsten Pilatti. “It means seeing the whole person, rather than the disease.”

Throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month, BCNA will share information about different resources available, across topics such as psychosocial support and exercise. They will also share personal stories from members about what helps them to live well.

BCNA offer trusted information and a variety of resources which can all be accessed via BCNA’s newly refreshed website at www.bcna.org.au.

Parkes IGA Store Manager Steven Langlois, and popular employee Joyce Sefonte dressed in Pink to support Pink Up Parkes.

Businesses, schools and organisations across Parkes are showing their support, and getting involved in Pink Up Parkes for the month of October to help raise money for the McGrath Foundation who support Breast Care nurses across Australia. 

At IGA in Parkes the Store Manager Steven Langlois is putting it all on the line to raise as much money as he can for the cause. Steven has set a fundraising target that they will donate to Pink Up Parkes, and once the target is raised he is committing to shave his head. So head on into IGA and support a great cause.

Data just released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)i estimates that more Australians than ever before will be claimed by pancreatic cancer, a disease that is, for the first time, acknowledged to be a common cancer. 

Pancreatic cancer has a devastatingly low five-year survival rate of only 12.5%. The disease is predicted to claim more lives than breast cancer this year (an estimated 3,669 people) and has the lowest survival rate of all common cancers. Over 4500 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year, and 80 per cent of patients will die within 12 months. 

“Pancreatic cancer results in limited visibility and reduced public awareness, and consequently, many people are aware that pancreatic cancer is now a common cancer,” says Michelle Stewart, CEO of PanKind, The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation. 

“In contrast, more high-profile cancers experience survival rates of over 90% while for pancreatic cancer the survival rate is only 12.5%, which drops alarmingly to just 6.8% for people who live in regional Australia,” continued Ms Stewart. There has never been a more critical time to call for increased funding.”

Worrying new research has unveiled that on average, Australian women alarmingly spend nearly 15 years of their lives dieting, with over a third experiencing negative emotions such as depression, anxiety, stress, and sadness in their pursuit of shedding weight. 

This disheartening reality could be affecting the roughly 7,200 women living in the Parkes community. Health care professionals want to encourage women in the area to seek assistance on their weight loss journey and understand they don’t have to do it alone. 

Endocrinologist, Dr. Ramy Bishay says “Far too often obesity is considered a lifestyle condition, but this report demonstrates that the ‘eat less, move more’ mantra is failing women. We simply can’t expect women to undue thousands of years of adaptation to starvation, in a matter of weeks or months by ‘eating less and moving more’.”

Additionally, Parkes currently falls within Australia’s Distribution Priority Area catchment, which identifies locations in Australia with a shortage of medical practitioners. This is a concern for locals that need to consult a healthcare professional as they embark on their weight loss journey with shortages potentially causing longer wait times for healthcare appointments. 

One of CWA NSW’s priorities is to support students to further their education, by offering grants and scholarships to school and tertiary students assisting to pay for educational expenses. It used to be fees and textbooks, but in today’s world of technology, it’s software and electronic devices.

Forbes Evening CWA Branch is pleased to support local student Annika Dukes, further her education by contributing financially towards the purchase of software and an upgraded device on which she can complete her assessments.

Annika is completing a Certificate IV Community Pharmacy Dispensing. She started this online course through the Pharmacy Guild Australia in January this year, after starting work at Life Pharmacy Forbes.

Annika said she soon realised the potential in being able to assist the community more through this type of employment after seeing all the behind the scenes work that goes into filling prescriptions and supporting customers.

Annika has learnt about CTG (Closing the Gap), concessions and Health Care Cards and how they apply to scripts, different medications and how they can help, as well as how to fill prescriptions.

Annika said, “I have already completed three assessments, with 15 more to go. Each assessment takes about three weeks and about fifty pages as well as a verbal assessment over the phone for each one,” she commented. Her course will take three years to complete.

“It’s been difficult not having the same software as my teacher as everything is done online and over the phone. My old laptop does not support that software,” Annika commented.

“This financial assistance from Forbes CWA Evening Branch will remove quite a few obstacles and make it much easier to complete assessments and receive feedback from my teacher by allowing me to get the appropriate software and laptop,” stated Annika.

Ms Robyn Miller, President of Forbes CWA Evening Branch presented Annika with her cheque at Life Pharmacy, commenting, “Education is one of the most valuable things we can possess, so we are pleased to be able to support a local person on their journey of learning,” she said.

Monday, 7th August was Aged Care Employee Day (ACED). Dementia Australia is celebrating Aged Care Employees by acknowledging the tremendous contribution that aged care workers make to improving the lives of people living with dementia, their families and carers.

Dementia Australia CEO Maree McCabe AM said, “more than two-thirds of aged care residents have moderate to severe cognitive impairment and aged care employees play a crucial role in supporting them.”

“We acknowledge and thank aged care workers for the difference they make to the lives of people living with dementia, their families and their carers,” Ms McCabe said.

“Aged care workers continue to be there to support those who need them the most, making a difference each and every shift.

Ask Annie is a mobile education app that helps care workers provide better support to people who are living with dementia. It provides easy to access training for aged care employees through short, self-paced modules.

Since its launch in June 2021, Ask Annie has been downloaded more than 17,285 times with more than 1,200 paid subscriptions.

To find out more about Ask Annie, visit Centre for Dementia Learning website