Prof. Chilingirova: Let’s Not Turn Cancer into a Stigma!

“As a society, we must not turn cancer into a stigma. These people are sick, but they are not to blame. Let us be more human, because human suffering is immeasurable. Cancer patients have all the same rights as everyone else, they can be happy, and we must help them achieve that.”

This was stated by Prof. Natalia Chilingirova, head of the Cancer Center at Heart and Brain Hospital in Pleven, who also emphasized the importance of prevention:

“The earlier we detect cancer, the easier it is to treat and the longer our patients live. While in other European countries screening has long been an established practice, in Bulgaria this is still not the case. These campaigns remain sporadic. A diagnosis reflects the patient’s condition; they are not to blame, and it is not a sentence. These patients are heroes—only they truly know how they cope with the diagnosis.”

She also noted that diagnostic methods have greatly improved in recent years, allowing for earlier detection of the disease.

The Cancer Center at Heart and Brain Hospital has excellent specialists who apply innovations in techniques and treatment on a daily basis, following established European standards.

Prof. Chilingirova highlighted that lifestyle, nutrition, and smoking are risk factors that have the greatest influence on whether someone develops cancer or not.