Pankaj Bhadouria urges women who are 40 years or above to get breast cancer screenings: ‘We don't take it seriously’

MasterChef India season 1 winner Pankaj Bhadouria shared that her surgery went well and thanked all her well-wishers for their concern.

Last month, Pankaj Bhadouria, chef and winner of MasterChef India season 1, shared an Instagram post about her diagnosis of breast cancer. On June 2, she has updated her followers with a health update and posted a new video to share a message for breast cancer awareness. She urged women to become a little more careful about their health and to prioritise regular breast cancer screenings and preventive health check-ups. (Also read: MasterChef India winner Pankaj Bhadouria diagnosed with breast cancer: Check signs and symptoms of breast cancer)

What Pankaj shared

She started, “Hello everybody, I personally wanted to thank all of you. You have given me so much love and support. People have been reaching out to me from all over. I am so grateful to all of you. Because of your prayers, I am on a road to recovery now. With God’s grace, my surgery went very well."

"I was very fortunate that my cancer was detected at a very early stage. That is why I could recover. That is why my surgery went so well. It happened because I did one routine, preventive health checkup. I would like to say that if you are 40 or if your mother and sister are 40 plus, then please make them take a test. It is a small test and it is a self examination which can be easily found on YouTube. My doctors tell me that in India, one out of every 20 women is susceptible to breast cancer. I was fortunate ki bohot jaldi pata chal gaya… bohot logon ka nahi pata chal pata hain (I was fortunate to know it so early, many do not get to know). So please take care of yourself. Be aware of yourself. We all think that it won’t happen to us, but it can happen to anyone," she said.

Breast cancer remains a primary health concern for women internationally. In a 2018 interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Tushar Jadhav, consultant of surgical oncology at Fortis Hiranandani Hospital, at the time, shared that the statistics are a stark reminder of the disease's prevalence.

Breast cancer detection and treatment

Doctors rely on a 'triple assessment' for a definitive diagnosis: clinical examination, imaging, and pathology. “Imaging, such as ultrasonography, digital mammography, image-guided core biopsy, and histopathology examinations on biopsy, can confirm the diagnosis,” said Dr Jadhav.

Experts recommend that breast self-examinations begin as early as age 20, performed once a month, with professional mammograms becoming a staple every three years after age 47-50 – if caught early, the prognosis is often optimistic. Regarding the road to recovery, Dr Bipte shared: “The treatments include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormone therapy or targeted drug therapy. But, the mainstay of treatment in early cancer is surgery.”

For many patients in the early stages, 'breast conservation surgery' — which involves removing only the affected tissue rather than the entire breast — is often an option, though doctors stress that the final plan 'depends upon the patient's clinical presentation and the stage of the disease'.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.