For decades, routine breast cancer screening has been vital for early diagnosis and improving survival rates. However, the current NHS breast screening programme does not give everyone who is eligible an equal opportunity to get screened. There are barriers that prevent certain groups from participating, especially those who are from deprived areas, minority ethnic communities, disabled people, people experiencing homelessness, or people who are part of the LGBT+ community.
Existing NHS England guidelines on improving screening uptake look at these underserved groups separately. But in reality, people often do not fit neatly into categories and different marginalised populations face similar challenges accessing healthcare. To explore this issue further, Breast Cancer Now held a roundtable with organisations, including the Race Equality Foundation, working to address health inequalities.
This statement is the result of that roundtable discussion and represents the collective view that breast cancer screening needs to become a more inclusive and accessible service for all. Overcoming barriers for underserved groups and ensuring everyone has an equal chance at early screening is vital for early diagnosis and survival. The current system falls short on that front, but with targeted efforts screening can live up to its lifesaving potential.
Read our consensus statement here.
