– Every day we have set up appointments for between 60-80 patients, and then there are always around 10-20 who do not show up. This is what Ailen Sunde Stavmen, who is a radiographer at Stavanger University Hospital (SUS), tells us. The 32-year-old has worked at the hospital for ten years, and says that both she and her colleagues are used to the fact that there is always a certain percentage who do not show up for an examination. Do you detect cancer at the first check-up? – Yes, it happens. The statistics are low compared to how many we take, but we have discovered cancer at the first check-up, Sunde Stavmen replies. Mammography image of a breast. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among women. Last year, almost 4,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer, according to figures from the Cancer Registry (external link). One in four women nationally does not show up for a mammogram. Women in Rogaland are best represented to be checked for breast cancer. Around 80 per cent of everyone who is called to class attends here. In comparison, only around 65 per cent show up for an examination in Oslo. This is shown by figures news has received from the Cancer Association in Rogaland. Painful? The mammography program has existed for over 25 years and is recommended by the Norwegian health authorities. Briefly, women in Norway between the ages of 50 and 69 are offered an examination of their breasts every two years, according to the Cancer Registry. The survey is expected to take five minutes. The actual pressure in the chest, during the screening, only lasts for a few seconds per image. Four pictures are taken in total. Two photos of each breast. Sunde Stavmen says that several of the women who turn up are nervous that it will be painful to be screened. Their experience is that most women think this goes perfectly well, and that it was not as painful as they had feared. There are few who find it very painful. – Some of the first-time ladies are nervous and unsure. But the vast majority who come here are glad they came and are relieved. – There is a certain percentage who do not attend their examinations, says Sunde Stavmen. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news Hotel guests receive instructions in the shower The theme for this year’s Pink Ribbon campaign is early discovery. This means that women are encouraged to check their breasts regularly, and to turn up for mammography when called. At Hotel Victoria in Stavanger, they now encourage women to take an extra check of their breasts in the shower. Pink notes with the text “Get to know your breasts” are hung in every bathroom in all of the hotel’s 107 rooms. The Norwegian Cancer Society is clear in its message. On the pink notes it says, among other things: Look and feel your breasts regularly, so that you get to know them better and can detect any changes early. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news – October has become very important for unity. I think that all people are affected by cancer in one way or another. For Silje Eike, who is sales manager at the hotel, the pink bow campaign is of great importance. Her mother got breast cancer and lived to be only 63. – When you lose a mother, it is the backbone of life. I am a mother myself. Today it is seven years since Eike lost her mother to breast cancer. The 43-year-old has little understanding of the fact that some women drop mammograms. – It is a very selfish thought. At least if there is someone who likes them. The call is to do so. No one wants to lose someone to cancer, she says. Silje Eike and Monika Sandvold at Hotel Victoria. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news Controversial use of resources – Mammography screening is a very important tool for detecting a cancer early. The earlier you detect that tumor, the better and more precise the treatment will be, and the better the prognosis for that woman. That’s what Camilla Gram, who is the district manager of the Rogaland Cancer Association, says. The fact that one in four women in Norway does not show up for a mammogram can be both about insecurity and cultural differences, she believes. – One of the reasons may be that the woman does not understand what this is. In other words, you come from a different culture and do not understand the summons. And then there are perhaps some who don’t want to or who simply forget. – Our goal is that all women show up for their mammography screening, says Gram. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news At the same time, the method has been debated. For several years there has been a discussion about the scope and cost of mammography screening. Researchers have questioned whether this method leads to overdiagnosis, which in turn can lead to overtreatment. – The debate has died down in recent years. That’s what Ingvil Mjaaland, who is chief of section at the department of blood and cancer diseases at Stavanger University Hospital (SUS), says. – The whole aim of the screening is to discover things as quickly as possible, says Sunde Stavmen. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news The results of many international studies (external link) show that fewer people die of breast cancer as a result of systematic screening carried out in Norway. And after, among other things, the Research Council in 2015 (external link) published an independent assessment of the results, there is no longer a major debate in the professional community in Norway, according to Mjaaland. – There are still dissenting voices, but they are few. Today, we have such good knowledge of the benefits associated with mammography screening that I don’t see it as debated anymore, she says.
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One in four women does not show up for a mammogram – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
