Surrey Hospital urges people to keep on top of breast cancer screening
New data from the NHS shows that people who miss their first screening have a 40% higher chance of dying from the disease
Royal Surrey County hospital is urging women to keep on top of their breast cancer screening.
New NHS data says that women who miss their first appointment are 40% more likely to die from the disease.
In England, women are invited for breast screening from the age of 50 up to the age of 71. All women should have received a first invitation for a mammogram by the age of 53.
However earlier screening is available for some people who have a family history of the disease.
The data also shows 70% of eligible women were up to date with breast screening as of March 2024, meaning almost one in three were not.
Mammograms can detect breast cancer early, often before a lump can be felt, which improves the chances of successful treatment and survival.
Dr Felicity Patterson, who is the Joint Chief of Service for Oncology at Royal Surrey County hospital, says that these screenings can lead to people avoiding the need for intensive treatment.
"I think the key thing is, is that we know that early detection is really important in breast cancer.
So if we are picking up disease in an earlier stage and if patients go for that first breast cancer screening and we pick something up early, they are much less likely to require more intensive treatment such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy and we are much more likely to cure them definitively."
Dr Patterson says that she thinks that lack of knowledge about the process could play a part in why some people don't get screened
"I think some people think maybe it's not a priority. It doesn't take very long. I had my mammogram recently. It took me 10 minutes in and out of the department, so it really does not take very long and I think that's something we really need to emphasise when patients attend are coming in.
I think the other thing that can be a barrier is that some people can be a little bit nervous about it, about what what they might find or whether it's going to be painful or uncomfortable. So I think it's dispelling a little bit of some of those myths and the worries about it."
Patterson added that although screening may be uncomfortable, it is a very small price to pay to avoid my intensive treatments down the line
"From us as oncologists, we know when we see patients who present later that they're going to have to have more intensive treatment and that treatment can be more difficult, more unpleasant to tolerate.
So the the short time you're going to have a mammogram that might be a little bit uncomfortable but not painful is a small price to pay for actually then potentially avoiding significantly more intensive treatment.
So I think that is a really important factor to get out there."