My Breakthrough
NHS Breast Screening Programme
We know that breast cancer is more common in older women and regular screening of women over 50 has been shown to reduce deaths from the disease. Breast screening is estimated to save over 1400 lives each year in England alone.
Women between the ages of 50 and 70 are invited to attend a special clinic or mobile screening unit to have a mammogram, an X-ray of the breasts, every three years.
Breakthrough encourages all women to accept this invitation and also return when called for follow-up. Doing this is an important way of caring for your breasts and screening can detect early changes to the breast, before they can be seen or felt by hand. The earlier cancer is diagnosed, the better the chances of successful treatment.
At present, women under 50 are not offered routine screening, as it has not been shown to be beneficial in this age group. This is because breast tissue is denser in younger women, making it hard to detect any problems and because breast cancer is relatively rare in pre-menopausal women.
Women aged 70 or over may make an appointment at the screening clinic without an invitation.
At any age, if you are concerned about a change in your breasts even if you attend your breast screening appointments, speak to your GP as soon as
possible.
Having a mammogram
A mammogram is a special type of X-ray that looks at the tissue of the breast. As it is able to reveal changes too small to be felt, it can potentially detect a change before you or your doctor has noticed anything different.When having a mammogram, it is a good idea to wear something that will allow you to gain access to your breasts easily, such as a blouse or shirt. However, it is a good idea to avoid using deodorant or talc containing aluminium when going for a mammogram, because the aluminium can show up on the X-ray and give an inaccurate reading.
One or two X-rays of each breast will be taken. To do this the breast is pressed firmly between two pieces of plastic. Some women do find this uncomfortable, or even painful, but be reassured that the X-ray takes less than a minute and the discomfort is temporary.
Getting the results
A radiologist will examine the mammogram and a letter should be sent both to you and to your GP within two weeks of attending the screening.
Around 95% of women will receive a normal result following their mammogram. A small number of women will be asked to return for a second screen or go an assessment clinic for further tests. This could be because the image was not clear or because abnormalities may have been detected that need further investigation. Of these women who go on to have further investigation, around 1 in 6 will be found to have cancer.
The NHS breast screening programme has further information about what happens at the screening appointment and if any further investigations are needed.
The screening debate
The purpose of the breast screening programme is to help to save lives: the earlier breast cancer is detected, the better the chances of survival. There has been much debate of late over the benefits of screening and its effectiveness. A 2002 report by the World Health Organisation's (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) looked at over 40 years of clinical trials and concluded that breast screening reduces the risk of dying of the disease by around 35 per cent in women aged 50-69 years.As well as attending screening appointments, women should also be breast aware and report any concerns to their
doctor.
Are there risks?
There may be some small risks involved in the process, such as exposure to low dose radiation through the mammogram x-ray. To put this in context, the dose of radiation involved is similar to that experienced through a return flight to Australia . Women can also find the process uncomfortable and a few might find it painful. However, these risks are greatly outweighed by the benefits of the screening programme.
Is information available about both risks and benefits?
For more information visit the NHS Breast Screening Programme.
Their publications page has several useful leaflets including:
- "Breast Screening: a pocket guide" - a simple guide to breast screening
- "50 or over? Breast screening is for You" - a picture leaflet for women with a learning disability to tell them about breast screening and where to get more information
- "Breast Implants and Breast Screening" - a leaflet designed to give women information about how breast implants affect mammography
Any woman who is diagnosed with cancer through breast screening should also receive further information about treatment options.
Also within "Breast awareness & risk factors"
- Breakthrough's Breast Health Promotion Work
- NHS screening programme
- Reducing your risk
- Body Talk
- Breast awareness
- Risk factors
