Around one in eight women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime, and it is the most common type of cancer found in women in B.C. Around 3,500 BC women will have received a breast cancer diagnosis in 2017.
BC Cancer’s screening mammography program offers no-cost screening mammograms to eligible women in BC. A screening mammogram consists of four images (two of each breast) that look for hidden cancer in women who are healthy with no symptoms and have never had breast cancer. Mammograms can usually find lumps two to three years before a woman or her primary care provider can feel them.
BC Cancer’s breast cancer screening coach will be in the area on the following dates:
Castlegar – Shoppers Drug Mart (1965 Columbia Avenue)
Feb. 2 and 3, Feb. 5 to 8
Nelson – Kootenay Lake Regional Hospital (3 View Street)
Feb. 9 and 10, Feb. 13 to 17, Feb. 19
Trail – Shoppers Drug Mart (1305 Cedar Avenue)
Feb. 23 and 24, Feb. 27 to March 3
To book a screening mammogram call 1-800-663-9203. A doctor’s referral is not required.
Women age 40 to 74 who have a mother, daughter, sister with breast cancer are recommended to have a mammogram every year. Women age 40 to 74 without a family history of breast cancer can have a mammogram every two years.
“Mammograms save lives by detecting breast cancers early, often before they have spread and when more treatment options are available,” says Dr. Colin Mar, medical director for the screening mammography program. “More women in BC are being diagnosed with breast cancer, but fewer are dying from the disease. This is in large part due to early detection and treatment.”
There are three mobile screening coaches that visit more than 120 rural and remote communities across BC each year, including over 40 Indigenous communities. The vehicles provide state-of-the-art digital mammograms, are wheelchair-accessible, and feature a spacious waiting area and comfortable private examination room. About 10 per cent of all screening mammograms performed in BC are done on the mobile units.
For more information, visit www.ScreeningBC.ca/breast.