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

[JudithOnHolidayAgain]

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.

@Sidebeforeself it depends how dense your breasts are. Density increases with age.

They already don't. You already have to see a man for some procedures, or see no one. I know.

There’s a shortage at the moment. Lots of women would have no issue with a man doing the mammogram so there will be the option of having a woman for those who want that. The profession will likely still be overwhelmingly female.

What about breast surgeons ? Mine was a man. He was thoughtful, kind and always had time to listen. He made me feel part of the process and a participant in the decisions, even though l knew the choices were limited, given the situation. I’m a survivor of DV which included SA and it never occurred to me to request a female surgeon because that would have delayed treatment.

@Lovelysausagedogscrumpy the consultant I saw with a lump was a male Dr who was patronising and rude. I had asked for a woman and was told no, so I do not know if that is why he was horrible to me. I left the clinic and cried.

That's twice now you've quoted me and asked about the 'more women needed' thing when if you read back you'll see it was the person I originally quoted who said that. Again, I merely stated my own preference, based on my own circumstances and my own experiences.

I am perfectly aware of the state of the NHS, I am neither stupid nor oblivious of that.

Yep. This. Very succinctly put. I was diagnosed with lobular breast cancer fourteen months ago. A very large tumour which l would never have detected myself until symptoms developed - by which point survival time would have been compromised and treatment much more invasive.

Most people who have never had a cancer diagnosis can’t imagine the shock and fear that comes with it, and the sense of insecurity it engenders. It changes your whole outlook on life. I couldn’t have cared less what sex the mammographer or the surgeon was, just as long as they could help me. Cancer is always something you think happens to other people. Until it happens to you.

How do you know the woman you get isn't a lesbian doing the job to feel up ladies boobs? Why only men?

No I don't think that the reason men opt to specialise in gynaecology is because they want access to women but there have been cases of abuse and assault, this case was not in the UK but makes for worrying reading https://apnews.com/article/gynecologist-sex-abuse-5fdbe07e8367927bb720f7b84ce8a825?utm_source=copy&utm_medium=sha

I was sexually assaulted by a male doctor when I was a teenager, guess that makes me ultra wary of the potential for male power in a medical setting.

I’m baffled that women would put this statistic before screening or treatment for a disease that if left, will ultimately kill them.

Yes we had this chat up thread I said to pp ive had all kinds of horrible investigations and major surgery couldn't have cared less on the sex of the surgeon.

I still don't want a bloke doing my mammogram. They are very up close and personal tests.

I am happy to have a competent man in any clinical setting (with a chaperone) as long as he isn't pretending to be a woman.

Well it’s not either or. If some women don’t mind their tits being squished and kneeded into place for a mammogram, by a man, good luck to them and they can tick that box, which would naturally make the other queue shorter for women that only want women.

so you wouldn’t have to wait longer if sine women don’t mind it

Really you think that a male radiographer would or should hug a topless female patient in distress as described in that post?

How many mammograms (especially in portable screening centres) have you personally experienced?

Your comments are very dismissive of multiple women describing the paraticular combination of personal body contact, hand manipulation and eye contact in their mammograms as more intimate than a smear test at the GP (that’s also my experience, plus of course I know my GP and practice nurses before I attend).

Its also all very well saying “choice” but as multiple PP have described - asking for a female HCP doesn’t mean you will get one and if you rock up and its a male you stand a good chance of getting the eye roll or the tutting routine and told to go to the back of the queue. Several posters describing this in their work place seem to think this is quite ok.
That isn’t “choice” and if the NHS can’t provide real choice it needs to stay a single sex service, not least because many women will be deterred and that will add to costs further down the line on top of all the chaperones needed.

@RipleyJones
But at the moment I couldn't have it done by a man even if I wanted to because its not allowed.
I would happily tick the box if there was one.

I’d be focussing on the screening results instead of if it was a man or woman doing the test.

If you quote someone saying that you 100% agree with them then you are agreeing/ saying that it's also your opinion. I don't understand what the problem is.

If you don't want to engage in discussion then don't?

I'm simply addressing the points you made/ agreed with, which are perfectly reasonable but also shortsighted in the current situation.

For the third and final time I'm agreeing with the sentiment of preferring a female practitioner. If it helps I'll reduce my agreement with the poster I quoted to about 75%.

I hope that finally clarifies what I'm actually saying.

Also the mammographer needs to be qualified as they need to make sure that the images have been taken correctly and include all the relevant structures so cannot just get a group of women from the street and show them the ropes.
They are also likely to know if there is an abnormality but not allowed to say - they are trained at doing the poker face just like sonographers.
Would people object to a gay man - what about a lesbian.
These are health care professionals.

Well yes of course it does help if you actually clarify what your opinion is rather than saying you 100% agree with a post when you don't 😅

I thought I already had but there you go.

If you make having a mammogram even more unpleasant then the likelihood is more women will opt out. I'm baffled that you think this is a good outcome.

Im not explaining myself to you,but yes I would risk dying than allow a man near me.

Ok the vast majority going by this thread wouldn’t so should have the option of choosing not to die.

Not going by this thread, completely untrue. Many women( the majority) would prefer to be seen sooner and have their risk of dying reduced.