Filipino women face the highest risk of developing breast cancer in Southeast Asia. Women's groups celebrating International Women’s Day March 8in Baguio raised this alarm, adding that the Philippines is top-ranked in terms of the incidence of breast cancer in Southeast Asia.

“This (breast cancer mortality rate among women) continues to rise by as much as five percent annually," said cancer survivor Maria Victoria Bugasto. Bugasto, who has been battling cancer for almost a decade now, told reporters Wednesday morning that breast cancer is now the leading cause of death among Filipino women and is the second most prevalent deadly disease among Filipino women, after lung cancer.