Meg O’Brien, Manager BreastScreen NSW Western Region.
BreastScreen NSW is encouraging women aged 50 to 74 to make their health a priority and book a free life-saving mammogram this Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Meg O’Brien of BreastScreen NSW Western Region said: “This Breast Cancer Awareness Month we want women in Western NSW Local Health District to make booking a breast screen a priority. BreastScreen NSW has implemented a range of hygiene and social-distancing measures to ensure clinics and mobile screening vans are COVID-19 safe, to protect women, staff and the wider community.”
Chief Cancer Officer and CEO of the Cancer Institute NSW, Professor David Currow said early detection is key to giving women the best chance of survival and reduces the likelihood of needing invasive treatment, such as mastectomy or chemo- therapy.
“In 2020 alone, it’s expected that more than 6,240 women in NSW will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 973 will die from the disease. However, if detected early, women have a 98 per cent chance of survival,” Professor Currow said.
“Breast screens can detect cancer as small as a grain of rice. Our research shows that women who receive a diagnosis as a result of regular breast screening are less likely to need a mastectomy. It proves that early detection is key to unlocking less invasive treatment options for patients, making it easier for them to recover, and giving
them an overall better quality of life.”
An appointment with BreastScreen NSW is free, takes about 20 minutes in total and no doctor’s referral is needed. In addition to 46 BreastScreen NSW clinics, BreastScreen NSW has 16 mobile vans that pro- vide services to about 180 locations across
NSW, including in rural and remote areas. If you are aged 50 to 74 book your free mammogram today with BreastScreen NSW online at book.breastscreen.nsw.gov.au or by calling 13 20 50.