KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Breast cancer survivors in Malaysia are relating their stories and experiences on a website in an effort to reach out to other patients and survivors.

The website at www.pinkribbonr2r.my is an interactive platform for anyone who wants to know more about the illness and what to expect when one is going through treatment.

Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fan, who launched the website yesterday said having such a support system would help cancer survivors as well as patients to cope with their illnesses.

"Reaching out to all women, telling them your stories, sharing your experiences with them might encourage someone to go for a mammogram, and even save someone's life.

"Research has shown that those who attend support groups tend to have higher survival rates," she said.

The website initiated by Malaysia's chapter of Reach to Recovery (R2R) 2009 was part of a breast cancer support group managed by breast cancer survivors.

R2R chairman Dr Devanand C. Mangharam, a consultant breast surgeon, said the heroism in breast cancer survivors was the ability, in spite of a scary and unpredictable illness, to move forward in life.

"This requires a tremendous amount of inner strength and courage.

"We need to enrich survivors with the knowledge to live well, through lifestyle changes, focusing on issues that relate to nutrition, exercise and peer support, all of which relates to complementary therapy," he said.

The 'PinkRibbonR2R - a Breast Cancer Support Group was formed in December 2008 with the objective of the providing breast cancer survivors, in various stages of their recovery, an opportunity to support other women suffering from breast cancer in the best way they can.

Yee Li Li, was one of the survivors, who had shared her experience on the web site.

"Cancer is a fearful word. It is frightening. It is a word which I hope does not appear in any vocabulary. Superstitious Chinese do not even want to hear or talk about it. It is like a death sentence," she wrote.

Another survivor Datin Norsiah Mahmud wrote that cancer had changed her. She was moody and always had migraine.

But with strong support from her husband and children, she managed to cope with her illness well, emotionally and physically.