To think that having a mammogram carried out by a man is preferable to a long wait for an appointment.

Rubbish. I can comment if I want to and so can others. I know I’d have no issue with a man performing it. And I don’t believe it’s much more invasive than a smear, a coil fitting, giving birth, a colonoscopy, all of which are routinely done by men with an option to request a female staff member.

& I don’t want to have to wait months when I’ve found a lump in my breast just because you wouldn’t be happy with a male specialist.

No one is making you have a male specialist, so you shouldn’t insist I’m not allowed one. If I die because my cancer wasn’t caught quick enough because @mumda won’t let me see a male specialist then sorry but fuck you. Stop taking away my choice about my body.

To everyone saying they would only be seen by a woman, do you think that people who don’t mind should be prevented from seeing a man?

If those of us who don’t care get seen by a man then that cuts down waiting time for everyone, instead of me taking an appointment with a woman that you could have.

You should have the right to be treated by a woman but you shouldn’t have the right to delay treatment for everyone else by cutting the available staff in half.

Radiographers get paid pretty shit which is partly why it’s a female dominated profession. I think any challenge to gender domination in a profession is excellent. Same with nursing.
I strongly support there being the option of a female radiographer but I think most women would be fine with a man doing it.
On the FWR thread on this, it was mad. People were making out that mammograms are the most humiliating degrading things that absolutely never must be performed by any man and some people were saying that they would be fine with a man performing a smear or even assisting with their birth but never a mammogram. When I challenged it someone said that having a mammogram is akin to someone pressing their body against you and squeezing your genitals. Absolute nonsense and just going with the narrative that all men are dangerous perverts just waiting to assault us.

That’s personal to you so just request a female, but don’t dictate what the rest of us would be okay with.

I had my first mammogram recently and I was quite shocked by it. They really grab and push you into position repeatedly. It was forceful. ( I do have small breasts). If this has been done by a man I would have been upset, rather than being able to laugh about it later. If I had a history of sexual violence I would have found it traumatizing

I agree. It’s not some vanity thing where we think our breasts are so sexy and we are being precious.
I had breast cancer. During the mammogram, right after the doctor assessed the lump, I burst into tears ( I absolutely hate mammograms I find them so painful and I was already traumatised) The female mammographer came around from the machine and put her arms round me and gave me a hug which I appreciated. Obviously I was topless.
Prior to the surgery I had to have wires pushed through my breast. Two female mammographers had to sort of hold me in a vice while they injected me with things and carried out a procedure that was more painful than the surgery.
It took around an hour. They were amazing, kind and professional and I remember them getting me to chat a bit, sharing about their kids, anything to try and make the process bearable.
Mammograms can be really traumatic. The women who are expert at working there know this, they can relate. Men doing it, for me, would have felt humiliating and sadistic.
Given the choice I would not have a male mammographer. Train more women.

Nearly 70% of radiographers are female so there should be no need for a male radiographer to carry out mammograms. If a chaperone is required then it means two members are staff are required for a procedure which only takes one and that the patient is undressed in front of two people rather than one. Neither of those options seems efficient or protective of patient dignity.

You can’t believe the professional body is suggesting something which will reduce the risk of breast cancer deaths?

Sorry, but a nan?!
I know it'll be a typo but I've now got an image of lots of Catherine Tate nans lining up to get trained, saying "worra fuckin liberty" 😂

And that's fine,but pushing it like it's the best option isn't on. Lots of people have lots of reasons for not wanting a nan to carry out an invasive procedure

I know many people who wouldn't be here now without early detection of breast cancer due to the screening programme.
I have had a few myself.
It's not something I look forward to but it's a few minutes of discomfort that could save my life so I put up with it.
Given the choice I would prefer a woman carry it out as it is quite intrusive but as there is a shortage of female staff I would be ok with a male member of staff as long as there was a chaperone and Iwas told in advance.
If they do change the rules I think there should be a choice.

Grow up!

Grow up!

I would hate to have a mammogram with a man and would probably not go. I can’t believe that the professional body is suggesting this.

"As others have pointed out, when men start doing mammograms the NHS line will be along the lines of “You may request a female or male practitioner and we will try to fulfill this, but there are no guarantees, and your procedure may be delayed”

I'm sorry but I don't understand this argument. So it's better that everyone's procedure should be delayed? Why?

It shouldn’t be a choice between a long wait or agreeing to it being carried out by a man. Having no real alternative is not choice.

Males tend not to mind so much ime.

Not my experience. The mammogram for which l had a recall showed an area of tissue which had changed when compared to the previous screening. The consultant radiographer did the biopsies and inserted the wire marker under local anaesthetic. Then she asked if l wanted her opinion on what the change was. I did. She told me she was certain that what she was looking at was a large, invasive lobular cancer. She was spot on.

My mammogram was delayed for just shy of ten weeks because of staffing problems. Cancelled twice in that time. I now know that had my cancer been more aggressive or faster growing, I would almost certainly have received a later stage diagnosis, necessitating more aggressive treatment and impacting survival time.

And not all cancers can be detected by the patient. Lobular cancer doesn’t present with lumps - there was nothing to indicate it was even there until the mammogram detected it. Routine screening it may be, but there is no doubt that it saves lives.