Has anyone decided not to go for a routine mammogram?

[hattie43]

I'm curious to know . I have mine next week and will attend but last time was a nightmare as I was recalled and health anxiety went through the roof . Luckily no cancer . I was reading that about 30% of women don't attend Apparently mammograms don't pick up everything and aren't foolproof , but surely they are better than nothing .

Thought you’d given up ?

Not on this thread - and you did reply first. 🤣

They aren’t painful for you. What motivates you to disbelieve other women’s experiences?

Every time you post I’ll reply

So how many women have positively diagnosed cancer per year due to screening?

From breast cancer.org

Brilliant, another thing to have huge anxiety about. I have a few years until I get called but have a very low pain threshold and find smears excruciating so much so that even sedatives don’t help much. I haven’t been to one for 5 years as it’s traumatising for me.
Didnt even consider a mammogram hurting. 😭😭
Why the fuck in 2023 are these procedures so painful? How am I going to get through it? Great. Only another few years to panic about this now.

This not you then ?

Where are people going that are conducting these mammograms that leave them in tears? I have had ten now (annual screening from age 40 due to increased risk) and not one of them has been painful. The staff are all skilled and respectful. I have always gone to the same hospital though so only have experience there. I thought they all used the same equipment, but maybe they don't. It must be a hell of a lot of pain if it's worth passing up the chance to catch cancer early and potentially save your life.

You truly are a bottom feeding troll then. Adding nothing to the discussion. You have missed replying to several of my posts by the way.

The leaflet says

Screening saves about 1 life from breast cancer for every 200 women who are screened. This adds up to about 1,300 lives saved from breast cancer each year in the UK.

and

Overall, for every 1 woman who has her life saved from breast cancer, about 3 women are diagnosed with a cancer that would never have become life- threatening.

When I had my first mammogram they told me that the call back rate on 1st timers is about 25/30% as mammograms are compared with previous ones and if there are no previous anything odd ( but normal ) gets a call back . I’ve just been for one , it’s no hassle and where I go they even have free parking . I don’t go for smears anymore since they changed what they check for .

The vast majority don't hurt

Tbh you come across like a child.

WiseUpJanetWeiss · Today 18:40

Downwithallthis · Today 15:53
No, I've never been for one and never will. I'm looking into private thermography instead. Mammograms are too invasive and painful and that's without the slight risk the radiation causes.”

No they aren’t. I’ve lost count of how many I’ve had, those and biopsies.

They aren’t painful at all. Much less invasive than cervical smear/colonoscopy. Would you not have those, either?

“They aren’t painful for you. What motivates you to disbelieve other women’s experiences?“

Which women? Doenwithallthis has never had one. How the hell would she know?

Mastectomy is a bloody sight more painful and invasive, that I do know. Early diagnosis can prevent that.

Someone who has never had the procedure shouldn’t be spouting bollocks about it. That’s my motivation, if it’s alright with you?

So the leaflet explains that for the 4000 women per year diagnosed and treated for a cancer that may not have caused them harm in their lifetime, 1300 women have their life saved.

The “false positive rate” (if you could call it that) was a little off putting for me too. But on balance I decided to go ahead.

Once again though, if makes needed this much screening for such a common cancer, I’m pretty sure they would have a much lower false pos rate by now.

The only things you can find on the internet saying thermography is a useful tool are from companies profiting from selling you these diagnostic tests why would anyone choose to spend money on a test that has no scientific validation even the US don't recommend it?

Sorry, typo

Once again though, if MALES needed this much screening for such a common cancer, I’m pretty sure they would have a much lower false pos rate by now.

PurpleWisteria1 · Today 18:41
Brilliant, another thing to have huge anxiety about. I have a few years until I get called but have a very low pain threshold and find smears excruciating so much so that even sedatives don’t help much. I haven’t been to one for 5 years as it’s traumatising for me.
Didnt even consider a mammogram hurting. 😭😭
Why the fuck in 2023 are these procedures so painful? How am I going to get through it? Great. Only another few years to panic about this now.”

Please don’t panic. I’ve had so many I’ve lost count. They did not hurt.

One of them probably saved my life.

I choose not to have any screening of any sort at any time (dons hard hat).

Well that’s fair enough - for me a 3 out of 4 chance of being harmed unnecessarily following the detection of a cancer is far too high a risk to take.

Others are perfectly entitled to come to a different risk conclusion. everyone should have their choices respected.

It’s a personal choice, I realise that, but as a parent I don’t think it’s reasonable to decline all screening.

Hmm, I think “harmed unnecessarily” is a bit deliberately inflammatory.

Please please please do not assume because some say they have read it's painful and a few have had one painful one and not been back that it will be painful for you breast cancer is very treatable if caught early. Treatment has come on so much even in the last 8 years including tests to determine individual risk factors of not having treatments against having them, to bury your head in the sand based on a minority experience would be tragic for your family if you were one of the 1 in 7 women to get BC in the UK. So that's one breast cancer in every 5 houses in your street if some have 2 females in.....then of course men get it too.

I agree with this.
I've never gone for one, have heard how painful they are so never will