High participation rate breast cancer screening programme

Nearly half of women aged 30 and older have their breast screened at least once every two years. The rate is far higher for women who are invited to participate in the national breast screening programme (nearly 90 percent).

High participation rate

All women in the 50-75 age bracket are invited to participate in mammography screening free of charge once every two years. Nearly nine in every ten women accept the invitation.
Approximately 17 percent of women do not respond, because they think screening is unnecessary. A similar proportion think the examination is too unpleasant and therefore decline participation.
As women grow older, they have more check-ups. Women who have had breast cancer, also frequently undergo mammography

Women who have had mammography screening in the past two years, 2006

Women who have had mammography screening in the past two years, 2006

Discovering a lump in their breasts or other complaints reasons for medical examination

Eight in ten women aged 50 and older who have undergone mammography screening were invited to participate. For women in the 30-50 age group who were not invited to participate, discovering a lump in their breasts or other complaints were reasons to participate in the screening programme in six out of ten cases. One quarter of women in this age category indicated they participated to anticipate serious problems in the future.

Reasons for mammography screening 2004/2006

Reasons for mammography screening 2004/2006

Breast cancer very common

In 2006, one in forty women aged 30 and older indicated to have had breast cancer in the past, i.e. 35 percent of total cancer incidence among adult women, making it the most common type of cancer in this age group.

Stephanie Stam and Marleen Wingen

Source: Breast cancer mortality rate considerably down