Surgeons from the department of general surgery at Stellenbosch University (SU), have recently conducted a clinical breast screening programme that detects the 10-year risk of developing breast cancer, at a lower cost than mammography screenings.
This is according to Dr David Gorry, a surgical registrar at the faculty of medicine and health sciences (FMHS) and Tygerberg Hospital, and principal investigator of the study. The study was conducted in November 2022 and made use of the International Breast Cancer Interventions Study (IBIS), Gorry explained.
The IBIS makes use of several factors, which include the age of the patient, the number of pregnancies, the BMI, the age of the first pregnancy, menopausal status, history of breast and/or ovarian cancer and whether the individual has an abnormal cancer causing gene (BRCA 1//2), said Gorry.
The IBIS tool is able to then “calculate a woman’s 10-year risk of developing breast cancer, relative to the general population”, explained Gorry.
Surgeons from the department of general surgery at Stellenbosch University (SU) recently conducted a risk stratified clinical breast screening programme. Nurses from Tygerberg hospital were welcomed to attend, confirmed by Dr Jenny Edge, breast surgeon in the Breast and Endocrine unit in the division of surgery at SU. PHOTO: Liam Voorma
Screening accessibility
“In low middle-income countries [such as South Africa], patients with breast cancer tend to have more advanced cancer at the time of diagnosis when compared to their counterparts in more affluent societies who have screening programmes,” stated Dr Jenny Edge, breast surgeon in the Breast and Endocrine Unit in the division of surgery at SU.
“In risk-adjusted screening, there is a focus on offering surveillance to higher-risk women,” stated Francois Malherbe, oncoplastic breast cancer surgeon at Cape Breast Surgery. “You need to do fewer mammograms to detect the same amount of cancers, and that reduces cost.”
SOURCE:Cansa.org.za
The touch, look, check (TLC) method. A simple, at home procedure that could be done to detect any abnormalities or lumps within the breast. INFOGRAPHIC: Liam Voorma
Assessment tools
“IBIS is one of several web-based breast cancer risk assessment tools. We are trying to move away from mass population mammographic screening to individual, personalised risk stratification,” said Gorry, via email correspondence with MatieMedia.
“Mammographic screening is not a realistic proposition in South Africa as there are relatively few mammogram machines. Screening by clinical breast examination has been shown to be beneficial in some countries and can lead to earlier detection of breast cancer. However, a proper clinical breast examination is time consuming,” said Edge.
‘’We need to focus our attention on educating patients about the symptoms of breast cancer” stated Francois Malherbe, Oncoplastic Breast Cancer Surgeon at Cape Breast Surgery. October is Breast Cancer awareness month in South Africa. INFOGRAPHIC: Liam Voorma