Breast screening - Breast cancer

• What is breast screening?


  ~ An x-ray called a mammogram is carried out to look for early signs of breast cancer

  ~ It finds breast cancer early (in apparently healthy people where the cancer is too small to see or feel) when they have the chance to successfully treat it

  ~ These cancers are usually easier to treat than larger ones

  ~ Breast screening finds cancer in around 9 out of every 1000 women that have screening
• Who has breast screening in the UK?

  1. For women between the ages of 50 and 70

  2. Screening carried out for these women that are registered to a GP every 3 years

  3. Also for some trans and non-binary people (inc trans men & non binary people (female at birth) who haven't had an operation to remove their breasts, trans women and non-binary people (male at birth) who have taken feminising hormones)
• Breast screening for women under 50

  
  

  ~ For women under 50, they are very young so at a low risk from breast cancer

  ~ For women under 50, mammograms are more difficult to read (denser breast tissue --> patterns on the mammogram don't show up as well)

  ~ For women under 50, there is little evidence to show that regular mammograms would reduce deaths from breast cancer
• What happens after breast screening


  1. Will get results within 2-3 weeks

  2. Radiographer will call when results are due

  3. Most people get a normal result - a letter will be sent out to say that their mammogram doesn't show signs of cancer

  4. The next screening appointment is 3 years on from then - need to contact GP

  5. Unclear results - clinic staff will call you back for more tests - x-rays may need to be taken again

  6. If you are called back - around 4 in 100 women (4%) get called back for more tests (many of these women don't have cancer) - usually bc the mammogram has shown an abnormal area (a magnified mammogram) - this can show up particular areas of the breast more clearly e.g. the borders of any lump / thickened area or can show up on areas of calcium

  7. May also have an ultrasound scan of the breast / test to take a sample of cells from the abnormal area (this is called a biopsy)