To have found my first mammogram really upsetting?

Well, yes. Presumably, she has. Since she knows herself and her family better than some random on the internet...

For the umpteenth time:

OP KNEW her breasts would be touched to some degree.
OP simply didn't LIKE the way she was touched/handled by the mammographer.

Why is that so hard for people to understand?

Mine was in a portable lorry thing, and I had to walk about 3 steps from where I took my top off to the machine - a gown would have been overkill there. Obviously in other locations, it might be a totally different arrangement.

@Rosscameasdoody I’m genuinely pleased for you that you don’t have any complaints whatsoever surrounding your screening/diagnosis and the attitudes of those caring for you was quietly professional. It’s nice to know we aren’t chasing unicorns in terms of respectful care.

@ everyone else who replied about the gowns. I’m gobsmacked they aren’t provided As routine. Even as a veteran, I’m still learning about this process.

Chin up @YompingJo I hope you’re finding this helpful.

Sorry to be dense, but what do you mean by this?

I'm pretty sure informed consent is required for literally every medical procedure. From vaccines to operations to smear tests to mammograms to breast examinations to any other procedure.

What would make you think you don't need informed consent?

For example this NHS web page says every examination, procedure etc needs appropriate consent and that for consent to be appropriate it must be informed:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/consent-to-treatment/

To Rosscameasdoody - I'm glad you were dealt with so quickly and presumably underwent treatment quickly. Was this on the NHS too? My treatment was private and within 2 weeks, so not as good as that even. I hope all is well with you now, and have recovered.

I wrote the quote you highlighted and it was based on my own experience of being told l had breast cancer after a mammogram. What’s mind blowing is how you could misinterpret that.

In didn’t have a gown. Undressed in a cubicle leading straight into the exam room and went in topless. Two radiographers, minimal conversation and a quiet professional attitude towards handling said body parts and adjusting positioning. No complaints whatsoever, just glad that their skill in what they do found a type of breast cancer which is notoriously difficult to identify using mammogram.

Exactly, she doesn't have to. Let's hope she's made the right decision for herself and her family.

I went for a mammogram at the end of march and was called back within a few days. I had a 3D scan, an ultrasound and a biopsy, all in that same appointment and at the end of it was given a diagnosis of breast cancer. I was advised by the consultant radiographer who arranged the call back that I had been recalled because it was obvious from the initial scan that l had a malignant tumour and the follow up tests and biopsies were to confirm her diagnosis and identify the type, size and stage of the cancer. She was right on all counts.

@JenniferBooth its really ok. I’ve had two. One was routine- no pain. The other was with a lump which was a cyst and that breast was slightly painful when in the machine but it’s seconds. Really wouldn’t put me off. However i don’t have SEN. If you have then flag it up!! That’s why they ask!

There are plenty of diagnostic scans which involve unpleasant positions and pain, including certain types of all of the above.

OP said she just got basic appointment details... no leaflet.
It should not be up to patients to "just Google". Some, for many reasons, wont be able to. And they should not be expected to. How can you trust the HCP treating you when they can't even reassure you about the very procedure they are carrying out?

I havent had my first one yet but these are the things putting me off.
a. foot pedal
b. squashed like a car at a scrapyard.
c. some of the attitudes from some of the health workers on here.

Informed consent isn’t specifically required for mammograms. Leaflets explaining the procedures in detail are sent with appointments. Why would you turn up for an appointment for an examination of a specific part of your body and then be surprised when that examination involves handling the part of the body involved ?

OP knew she was going to have her tits flattened... she was not prepared for the person doing it failing to do their job properly.

You cannot run a health service on "they should have googled it". That is just not how informed consent works.

Oh come on it’s common knowledge amongst women. You talk with friends, sisters, family members about these things . If not wouldn’t you read the leaflet or Google?

I really don't think that the panini press element of breast screening is common knowledge: it certainly came as a surprise to me the first time I had it done.

X-rays, MRI scans, CAT Scans, ultrasounds: none of these are painful
or involve having your body squished.

Other scans don't involve the relevant body part being flattened between plates. I didn't realise the full extent of it until this thread. I mean, for a chest X-ray you just stand there like nothing's happening, rather than getting squeezed in some kind of iron maiden.

What I find odd is people not understanding that OP knew she was going to be touched. She simply objected to HOW she was being touched. You know there's a difference, right?

If OP didn’t want her breasts clamped between two metal plates then why on earth would she go for a mammogram? The radiographers don’t have X-ray vision for goodness sake, anyone could take a good guess at what the procedure requires

@MeTooOverHere

as I said further up the thread my comment bout the machine being designed by a man was a joke -

I see now I should have written ‘lighthearted’ next to it for those with a sense of humour failure

Is that your only takeaway from that entire post?

I absolutely hate this term! It's just become a stick with which to beat people daring to exercise bodily autonomy.

So what if she is one?
So what if she doesn't want her breasts clamped between two metal plates?
So what if she doesn't want a plastic speculum inserted into her vagina?
So what if she doesn't want something injected into her?
What the hell has what she does - or not -with her own body got to do with you or anybody else!?

You went for a mammogram as it said on the appointment letter and so you had a mammogram - kindly, what else did you expect? The letter didn’t hide anything. If you felt the need to research things further in order to see exactly what was going to happen at the appointment then you should’ve done so beforehand