BC program hopes to double mammography screening CMAJ 1997;157:865 © Canadian Medical Association The Screening Mammography Program of BC is launching new strategies in an attempt to more than double the proportion of BC women aged 50 to 74 who undergo screening; the current level is 32%. The program's target is a 70% screening rate every 2 years. An attempt will be made to contact all women in this age group who have never received screening and a new pamphlet will be sent to every BC physician. "The strongest influence is endorsement from the family doctor," says Dr. Ivo Olivotto, chair of the BC Cancer Agency's Breast Tumour Group. "Their role is critically important." Olivotto also plans to expand a promising pilot project in Kamloops, where a health-promotion specialist who recruited women from a variety of community sources achieved a screening-participation rate of more than 50%. This "direct-marketing" approach has proved successful in some other provinces and in Australia. The BC program is also sending its new pamphlet to women in their 40s who have already received screening. Olivotto says the agency is "trying to be neutral" in its position on offering mammography to women in this age group. The program was previously perceived "to be heavily promoting mammography for women in their 40s, but the evidence was strongly against it." He says that there has been "a lot of controversy but not a lot of clarity" in information provided to these women. Alberta, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia also offer screening mammography to women aged 40 to 49. -- © Heather Kent Send a letter to the editor responding to this article Envoyez une lettre à la rédaction au sujet de cet article | CMAJ October 1, 1997 (vol 157, no 7) / JAMC le 1er octobre 1997 (vol 157, no 7) |