"You have breast cancer." This is a statement about one in eight women will hear at some point in their lifetime.
Most people, even older women themselves, are surprised to learn that a woman’s risk for breast cancer continues to increase as she gets older. Women are living longer. The percent of women over 80 is growing exponentially. Yet most 80-year-old women do not realize their risk of breast cancer is 20 times higher than a 40-year-old woman.
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month, which creates an opportunity to remind women that they have a responsibility to themselves to detect breast cancer as early as possible. Self-breast examination should be done monthly; clinical breast examination by a health-care provider should be done at least yearly; and a mammogram should be done annually after the age of 40.
Although mammography is the best method available to detect breast cancer, few women in the Virgin Islands get a mammogram. The Medicare data for 1998 reported approximately 28 percent of Virgin Islands women received a mammogram.
The national goal is 80 percent. This rate of 28 percent for the Virgin Islands is very unfortunate, since mammography can detect breast cancer when it is most treatable and often completely curable.
VIMI understands that many women do not realize that the most significant risk factor for breast cancer is not family history, or never being pregnant. The most significant risk factor is age. VIMI understands that many women fear finding the cancer but do not realize the real fear should be finding the cancer too late to treat it. Living with breast cancer is a very difficult life experience that can be minimized or avoided.
Every week in my office, as I appeal to women to get their mammogram, I hear comments that might be your comment: "It’s shameful to show my breasts to strangers." "It’s too painful."
Most technicians that perform the mammograms are women. These technicians understand the importance of properly draping the woman for the mammogram to reduce embarrassment during the procedure. The technicians also understand that the mammogram is painful for a few seconds. These technicians are highly trained to perform the mammogram in the least amount of time with the greatest accuracy.
The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), the federal agency that administers the Medicare program, has charged all Medicare Peer Review Organizations (PROs) with the responsibility of improving the rate of mammography in their state.
The Virgin Islands Medical Institute (VIMI) is the PRO for the Virgin Islands. For a number of years, VIMI has been working with health care providers to improve the rate of mammography utilization, which before its invention was 6 percent. VIMI is a physician directed organization.
VIMI understands the most common statement as to why women do not get mammograms is because they were not told to do so by their physician. VIMI is attempting to work on all levels — with physicians, with radiological centers, with the V.I.
Department of Health, with hospitals and with the patients themselves — to get a mammogram. Our common mission is to improve health care in the territory.
Join us in the fight to find the breast cancer before you feel it. Join us in the fight to find the breast cancer early enough to cure it. Make breast cancer awareness, not just the month of October but every month, by making sure that all women 40 years and older do monthly-self-breast examination, yearly clinical breast examination, and annually get a mammogram.
