VZCZCXRO0928
OO RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHRH #0946/01 1690452
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 170452Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY RIYADH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8634
RUEHJI/AMCONSUL JEDDAH PRIORITY 9592
RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 3020
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 RIYADH 000946 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/PPD (DBENZE, PAGNEW); NEA/ARP (BMCGRATH); NEA/PI; R 
WHITE HOUSE FOR ANITA MCBRIDE; NSC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KWMN KPAO SA
SUBJECT:  Saudi Arabia:  Women Revved Up To Spread Word on Breast 
Cancer Awareness 
 
REF:  07 RIYADH 2180 
 
¶1. (U) Summary and comment:  After First Lady Mrs. Laura Bush's 
historic visit to Saudi Arabia and her October 2007 launch of the 
US-Middle East Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness in Saudi 
Arabia, a fragile partnership is moving forward.  Mrs. Bush's visit 
attracted national attention to this issue and inspired women to get 
screened, and to get involved.  Much progress has been made with the 
start of an awareness course in four cities, and a recently 
implemented research partnership.  Women and residents of 
difficult-to-reach areas like extremist-stronghold Al-Qassim are 
enthused about spreading the word on this deadly disease, and thanks 
to this partnership we are reaching new audiences.  Comment:  Mrs. 
Bush's follow-on visit to the King Fahad Medical Center to learn 
about progress certainly helped continue the momentum.  Continued 
engagement at political levels will be necessary to ensure the 
partnership remains on track.  End summary and comment. 
 
 
Awareness Training:  Course for the Cure Launched 
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¶2.  (SBU) The US-Middle East Breast Cancer Partnership for Awareness 
and Research with Saudi Arabia entered a new phase in February 2008 
with the launch of the Susan G. Komen Course for the Cure Awareness 
training.  Training sessions took place in four cities:  Riyadh, 
Jeddah, Qassim and Dammam.  Saudi women interested in spreading 
breast cancer awareness throughout the Kingdom attended the training 
sessions, led by two master trainers who were certified at the Komen 
Center in the US.  Master trainers Huwayda Darweesh and Fatima 
Al-Qarzaee (please protect names) presented the Community Profile 
Module one-day session to an audience of 15-20 women at each 
location from February 23-27.  A two-hour Media Workshop was also 
presented to smaller groups of public affairs professionals to 
provide tips on building an advocacy campaign around this public 
health issue.  With these training sessions, Saudi Arabia became the 
first country in the world to implement the Susan G. Komen Course 
for the Cure under a partnership agreement.  Through this program, 
participants themselves will have the capacity to create their own 
community-based breast cancer outreach programs in Saudi Arabia. 
 
A New Partnership Advances 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶3.  (U) US-based partners were actively involved in the training 
sessions in a show of support for a fragile partnership and to 
further institutionalize the program.   NEA Senior Advisor Erin 
Walsh, Institute for International Education/Komen Global Initiative 
Representative Patricia Tierney, and Pulitzer Prize-winning 
freelance journalist Caryle Murphy, together with several 
representatives of the US implementing organization ICF 
International comprised the US delegation.  Dr. Mushabbab Al-Asiri, 
Saudi Cancer Society (SCS) senior representative, and Dr. Samia 
Al-Amoudi, breast cancer survivor, member of the SCS's High 
Committee on Breast Cancer, and key driver on the Saudi side, were 
the main Saudi interlocutors.  The key players further cemented 
their working relationships during the visit.  Dr. Al-Amoudi made 
the complete four-city tour, attending each of the training 
sessions, presenting her personal testimony as a survivor, and 
underscoring the need for early detection. 
 
Strong Buy-in Signals Public Receptivity 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶4.  (U) The training sessions targeted health educators, staff from 
women's associations and charitable societies, nurses and nursing 
students.  Enthusiastic and engaged, the 'trainees' connected well 
with the female master trainers.  Zahra Breast Cancer Society Chair 
Princess Haifa bint Faisal bint Abdulaziz Al-Saud (and wife of 
Prince Bandar, former Ambassador to the US) attended the Riyadh 
media advocacy workshop.  The Al-Qassim program took place under the 
sponsorship of Princess Noura Bint Mohamad Al-Saud, Chair of the 
Qassim Women's Society and Qassim's Breast Cancer Awareness Program, 
who hosted the delegation at one of her residences.  Princess Noura, 
wife of the Governor of Qassim, even took out a half-page 
advertisement in English-language Arab News to show her support and 
to thank Partnership advocates.  Al-Qassim Health Services Director 
Dr. Atif bin Mohmad Suror also provided immense support, but support 
from the women involved is what really resonated with the 
participants and inspired them to break the cultural taboos on this 
subject.  Princess Noura's involvement in this project from the 
beginning has been a driving factor behind the initiative. 
 
Course for the Cure, Striving for Completion 
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RIYADH 00000946  002 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The Course for the Cure goal is to increase public 
awareness on the issue and encourage more women to take advantage of 
early screening and detection.  To this end, Saudi master trainers 
Huwayda Darweesh and Fatima Al-Qarzaee (please protect names) have 
been presenting four additional training modules, and are set to 
complete the course by the end of June.  At the completion of the 
course, the participants will be certified to (a) continue spreading 
the breast cancer awareness message throughout the Kingdom, and (b) 
build a broad, community-based network of women volunteers working 
together to further educate women throughout the Kingdom. 
 
Strengthening the Partnership through Research 
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¶6.  (U) King Fahad Medical City CEO, Dr. Abdullah Suleiman Al Amro 
hosted a "Medical Research Meeting on Breast Cancer in Saudi Arabia 
- Road to the Future," conference March 22-23 to discuss the 
partnership's research components and areas of possible future 
collaboration.  Representatives of Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer 
Institute and the University of Texas's M.D. Anderson Cancer Center 
worked with the Saudi participants to identify specific areas for 
collaboration.  The group hopes to embark on joint research in gene 
profiling linked to a common treatment/therapy for breast cancer, 
and the establishment of an epidemiological database. 
 
Al-Qassim:  Model Efforts in the Saudi Heartland 
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¶7.  (U) Al-Qassim is a model of how the right program can open doors 
to engagement in places traditionally hard for us to reach.  Health 
officials have been actively working to raise breast cancer 
awareness for a number of years, and have welcomed the Partnership's 
efforts.  Facilities like a one-stop Breast Cancer screening and 
treatment center at capital city Buraidah's Main Hospital and a 
mobile Mammography Screening Unit, fully staffed by women, show 
Al-Qassim is serious.  The mobile unit travels to remote locations 
for screenings and the results are telling.  According to Dr. 
Muzamil H. Abdelgadir, Health Education Advisor for the Al-Qassim 
Breast Cancer Awareness Program, 70% of women surveyed in 2005 had 
no knowledge of self exams, but 78% were ready to be educated, and 
51% thought they should practice breast self exams.  These findings, 
published in the Saudi Medical Journal in 2005, provided the 
justification for the launch of an awareness program.  The region's 
now active awareness campaign includes the Al-Qassim Women's 
Committee; local religious leaders, key in an area known for 
extremist activism, have even been consulted to gain their buy-in 
concerning screening efforts.  The Al-Qassim women continue to 
advocate for better awareness and better screening facilities, and 
continue to work to educate women on how early detection will reduce 
mortality rates. 
 
Mrs. Bush Remains Engaged; Momentum Continues 
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¶8.  (U) Mrs. Bush returned to King Fahad Medical Center May 16 to 
visit with women both working to raise awareness and those 
benefiting from advanced care thanks to increased screening efforts. 
 Mrs. Bush met with doctors, researchers, hospital administrators, 
patients, and activists, all of whom enthusiastically embraced the 
initiative she had kicked off in October of 2007.  Her high level of 
engagement was clearly inspiring to the women present, and many 
commented her support has given them courage to continue their 
efforts to overcome cultural taboos to combat this disease. 
 
Media Coverage:  Extensive, Positive, and Taboo-Shattering 
- - - - - - 
 
¶9.  (U) Following on the impressive media coverage of Mrs. Bush's 
historic October 2007 visit (ref), each stop along the February 
four-city tour was prominently featured in the local press thanks to 
a press conference featuring the American and Saudi partners.  In an 
interview with Saudi TV2, NEA Senior Advisor Erin Walsh discussed 
the need to raise awareness with male correspondent Fouad Nehed, in 
an effort to cross a gender barrier, thereby making the discussion a 
family one.  The overwhelmingly positive media reception continued a 
trend of raising awareness, which was sustained with widespread and 
prominent coverage of Mrs. Bush's May return trip. 
 
Conclusion and Comment 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶10. (U) This partnership has had a very high profile launch with 
many important stakeholders, both American and Saudi, voicing their 
support.  The Course for the Cure is well on its way to completion, 
 
RIYADH 00000946  003 OF 003 
 
 
research partnerships are moving forward, and many women attribute 
the raised profile of this issue to Mrs. Bush's involvement.  On the 
Saudi side, there have been many growing pains along the way as all 
of these activities have come together.  The support from the 
American partners has been tremendous. 
 
¶11.  (U) Comment:  The Saudi ladies involved are inspirational 
figures, true assets to the partnership initiatives, highly 
motivated, and certainly capable.  Despite Saudi King Abdullah's 
reformist policies to slowly open more opportunities to women, the 
Saudi women driving this program do not yet have the full support 
and backing of the umbrella partner organizations, the Saudi Cancer 
Society and the King Fahad Medical City.  One example was the lack 
of Saudi institutional administrative and coordinating support 
during the four-city tour.  The network of women graduating from the 
Komen training course will need full institutional support from 
these organizations.  Only continued and consistent involvement from 
high-ranking Embassy and State officials will ensure the partnership 
continues to get the Saudi institutional support it needs.  Based on 
the warm reception to the topic, and the potential for reaching so 
many Saudis we would not reach otherwise, this initiative is the 
right program at the right place.  We will continue our engagement 
efforts.  End comment and conclusion. 
FRAKER