“Check What Really Matters” returns to support year-round action on prevention, early detection and healthier behaviours, opening with an expert panel on 5 October
UAE, Abu Dhabi, 2 October 2026: Cancer screenings in Abu Dhabi increased by more than 280% in 2025 compared with 2024, reflecting growing uptake of early detection and the adoption of more proactive health behaviours.
Building on this momentum, Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre (ADPHC) has launched this year’s “Check What Really Matters” cancer early detection campaign, which aims to strengthen preventive health behaviours and establish regular screening as a routine and sustained part of the community’s health habits.
The campaign is grounded in the recognition that knowledge alone does not always lead to behaviour change. Despite awareness of the importance of early detection, factors such as fear of the results, underestimating one’s likelihood of developing cancer, or misconceptions about screening can lead people to postpone or avoid it.
With this in mind, “Check What Really Matters” focuses on understanding and addressing the behavioural barriers that may prevent people from undergoing preventive screening, using messages and experiences that resonate with the everyday lives of men and women across the community. In doing so, it aims to correct misconceptions, build confidence in the value of early detection and encourage regular screening as a sustained preventive health habit.
The campaign also highlights inspiring stories of people who have recovered from cancer, returning to their lives to achieve new ambitions and milestones, helping to address the fear associated with diagnosis and build confidence in early detection and the continued progress in care and treatment.
First launched in 2025, the campaign aims to strengthen preventive health behaviours and encourage community members to make screening part of their ongoing approach to looking after their health. Last year, it brought together more than 100 partners and delivered 30 events, encouraging people to prioritise their health and take up preventive screenings.
H.E. Dr. Rashed Al Suwaidi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, said: “We know that awareness alone is not always enough to change behaviour. A person may understand the importance of screening but still postpone it out of fear, a belief that they are not at risk, or inaccurate perceptions about the screening itself. Through the ‘Check What Really Matters’ campaign, we are working to understand and address these barriers and establish preventive screening as a sustained health habit. The earlier we detect disease, the greater our ability to intervene early and achieve better health outcomes.”
Beyond addressing behavioural barriers, “Check What Really Matters” also highlights the scientific and medical advances that are reshaping cancer prevention, early detection and treatment, helping community members understand what is possible today and building confidence in adopting proactive health behaviours.
Between 2024 and 2026, more than 5,000 individuals benefited from a blood-based liquid biopsy test for colorectal cancer screening. ADPHC is also currently implementing a multi-cancer early detection (MCED) pilot programme with more than 3,000 Emirati participants aged 40 and above, which aims to detect signals associated with more than 70 types of cancer using a single blood sample.
Dr. Durra Al Balooshi, Advisor, Community Health Sector at Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, said: “We are witnessing rapid advances that are allowing us to reimagine how cancer is prevented, detected and treated. This journey begins before disease develops, by empowering community members to adopt healthy lifestyles and by drawing on advances in genomics to better understand risk. At the same time, ongoing screening programmes and new technologies are creating more opportunities for early detection, while therapeutic innovations and new medicines continue to expand treatment options and improve health outcomes. Our goal is to harness these advances across every stage of the health journey, enabling community members to prevent disease where possible, detect it early, and access the right care and treatment at the right time.”
“Check What Really Matters” runs throughout the year, focusing on different cancer types at key awareness milestones: breast cancer in October, lung cancer in November, cervical cancer in January and colorectal cancer in March. This reinforces prevention and early detection as an ongoing practice rather than one tied to a single awareness occasion.
With Breast Cancer Awareness Month begins, the campaign’s focus this October will address the barriers and misconceptions that may delay breast cancer screening, including fear of the result and misconceptions about mammograms. It will also highlight the experiences of people who have recovered from breast cancer and returned to their lives, continuing to pursue their ambitions and achievements, alongside raising awareness of the latest advances in prevention, early detection and treatment.
These efforts come as Abu Dhabi continues to strengthen specialised breast health care, including the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi’s recent designation of three Oncology Centres of Excellence for Breast Cancer. This supports the delivery of specialised, integrated care to the highest standards and enhances the emirate’s capabilities across every stage of the patient journey.
ADPHC’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month activities will open with a panel session on Monday, 5 October, bringing together leading breast health and oncology physicians and specialists from the emirate’s foremost hospitals and institutes, alongside breast cancer patients sharing their experiences and inspiring stories. The session will also highlight advances in prevention, early detection and treatment, and will be followed by a series of awareness activities throughout October under the “Check What Really Matters” campaign.
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