Allow Male Workers to perform mammograms and breast screening

[CrakdEgg]

OK, so the Society & College of Radiographers have their annual delegates conference, where members bring forward motions for the union to lobby on.
In the past they have passed motions to 'remove gendered language' from health communications for inclusivity - you know, 'pregnant people' and the like. They then lobby behind the scenes to the Government to follow these requests.

This year we have this motion -

Allow Male Workers to Perform Mammograms

Workforce shortages: there are 15 posts for mammographers on NHS jobs. In the UK.

But are we bothered? Do we not want males in this space, or does it not matter because we have male gynaecologists? Or will it dissuade women from attending?

I am interested to hear other people's opinions. My instincts say 'no way Jose', but I am interested in keeping males out of female spaces, so I accept my bias.

Thoughts?

NRTFT It looks as if this same motion was put forward on the same premise in 2017 and rejected.

Also soon may be an excess of radiographers?
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/feb/04/nhs-to-launch-worlds-biggest-trial-of-ai-breast-cancer-diagnosis

Different profession. Its Radiologers who read the images. Radiographers or Mammographers who take them.

That's about radiologists rather than radiographers.

He self identified as bloke.. and didn’t seem to have body dysmorphia in explaining how he felt comfortable with his bits being handled by any sex…but I guess I’m guilty of assuming that makes him a he.
still makes they an idiot or obtuse though!
🤣🤷‍♀️🤣

My mistake.

The motion has been carried: The Society of Radiographers will lobby the government for males to go into mammography.

I am very uneasy. I do not like:

The timing
The way that once patients and women knew, it was removed from view
The coincidental surrounding publicity; I have never heard of a Society of Radiographers annual delegates motion being given pre-arranged publicity on any news agenda, ever. Let alone debated on the BBC.
A topic posted at the same time on AIBU in support of it.

The last remaining exemption from the Equality Act when recruiting is now up for debate, apparently. You may have a different view, I may be overreacting but I do feel SCR or no SCR, they have not given up.

ETA: Saw this on a screenshot on Facebook, same as I saw the original news post. Hopefully the information is correct.

Point is generally most women don’t view breast in that way most of the time…outside of sex act or foreplay …but significant majority of men do.

im taking account of homosexuality in that statement.

breast development in humans is a puzzle. It’s an evolution that is unique amoungst mammals (least ways fairly unique) in terms of permanent enlargement…so something in our evolutions deemed survival was big all the time is better ! So nantural to conclud3 it has to do with mate selection

https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/scientists-still-stumped-by-the-evolution-of-human-breasts

I think we need to get writing to MPs and contacting the Society

https://www.writetothem.com

www.sor.org/about/society-of-radiographers/contact-us

I really don’t think that enters head of anyone called up. It’s not like they’re round back of bike sheds, poorly lit streets, or in dodgy places with drug selling etc…

they’re in “nice” car parks.

Or sometimes at GPs or med centres where car park is big enough. Sometimes in local hospital round the back of other buildings.

there’s a quiet slow stream of women go in and out. Nothing that would make me feel scared or unsafe..becuase I know it’s women only in the trailer. There’s often partners waiting in cars, women sitting in cars till their time as we know there ain’t room to swing a cat in the trailer.

that’s definitely clutching at straws why women don’t go…

they don’t go because

1. it’s embarrassing
2. it hurts
3. theres always something more important to do
4. Fear of illness etc
5. dont believe it’s effective - eg false positive data
6. for others in ethnic minorities there’s the modesty bit and a shed load of cultural reasons
7. lack of education- the biggest issue especially in deprived areas with low education levels and English not as first language

fixing the whole education, especially in deprived regions, is what’s needed…and male mammographers won’t help that . 40% don’t take it up. That’s not down to going into quiet car parks

Many women would find a male squishing their breasts about uncomfortable (I mean it's uncomfortable anyway but added uncomfyness with a man?). Others would not attend at all if it is not a female who will do this, for religious or trauma reasons. Odd this should come up just after the SC ruling.

Accusations are out there of wholesale deletions of comments that do not support the party line from the Society of Radiographers social media posts.

I've been treated for breast cancer and in that situation was treated mainly by female staff, most of the time with more than one person in the room, so effectively chaperoned when there was a male doctor in the room.
Mammograms however were always done with just me and the radiographer in the room. No way would I have been happy with a man doing that.

I find this whole story ridiculous. It is the perfect example of an arrogant professional body having no comprehension of patient care

The Society of Radiographers decide to lobby govt !!!! 😂😂

How is that going to help a male radiographer sat in a mammography van, who has women turning up to their appointments all day, seeing that the radiographer is a man, and walking away? That man is going to be bored, under-utilised and ultimately his presence would be counter -productive. Screening rates would plummet. A hugely successful screening program would be wrecked.

So to the Society of Radiographers - you don't get to decide. Your patients have free will and would not accept this, so give it up now.

Am actually on the patient advisory board for breast cancer treatment. They're incredibly conscious that they're not reaching huge parts of the highly varied community, many of whom are ethnicities who would not want to deal with male clinicians. Given they're striving to make the entire breast wing staffed by women only, I just can't imagine them letting males onto the staff. Indeed, one of the few male consultants was phased out shortly after I had to make a complaint about him. (And to be clear, there was a female chaperone in the room during my consultation and it did not stop him from behaving inappropriately.)

I can't help that feel that bringing males in is a huge step back. Again, I know many women in this thread don't have an issue with a man performing a mammogram, but many do.

Any man who chooses to do this is a fool imo. I guarantee that being the subject of complaints will be an occupational hazard, every one of them will be on the receiving end of a complaint sooner or later. Women will ask themselves? Did he stand unnecessarily close? Did he just brush against my bottom? Did I imagine it or did he have a hard on? He handled my boobs roughly? He seemed to be fondling my bosom? He clamped it unnecessarily tightly? He wanted to hurt me?
Especially for women who have never had a mammogram before and don’t know what to expect they will wonder about every detail and was it necessary or was it done right. The presence of a chaperone will make no difference.

Honestly why would you put yourself in the position that you are laying yourself open for complaints? For that reason alone I question the motivation and or lack of understanding of any man choosing this as a career path.

NB I am not suggesting that women would make spurious complaints (although some may). Just that the procedure involves actions/behaviours that could easily be misinterpreted. Too cheerful? was he enjoying doing this? Too offhand/surly? Did he inflict unnecessary pain? Was he enjoying inflicting that pain?

You’d be mad to put yourself in this position.

A number of the women on here who say they wouldn’t mind have said they haven’t actually had a mammogram.

Interesting. We have a mix of male and female consultants on our breast unit. They are all great. Really lovely caring brilliant Drs. A couple of them always have a big theatre list in Fridays and always come in on their day off Saturday morning to check in their patients.

However…very recently there was a locum. He succeeded in getting complaints about him on his first day in theatre. Further upset the theatre staff on a subsequent day. Left after five weeks, I’m not sure if his temporary appointment was always five weeks or if he was sent packing early. I can’t say what the complaints were as it’s too identifying and shouldn’t be repeated. But it was creepy and concerning. So now he’s off locuming elsewhere. It’s awful really as if he sticks to locum work it will be a long time before any body of evidence is gathered that could be sent to the GMC.
NB I’m not aware there were any complaints or concerns about his surgical technique so just to reassure that no woman was harmed. But he’s exactly the man you wouldn’t want doing your mammogram.

I find the timing suspicious as well.its gaslighting and grooming women to accept men for intimate care. Just like only fans and sex positivity is grooming young women to accept sexual exploitation

my view of the medical profession as a whole is that it is arrogant with institutional sexism and ageism embedded at every level from my experience of both my parents, care an recently my niece's experience in childbirth turned away from the hospital in labour as she wasn't in sufficient pain even though she was a considerable distance from the hospital on country lanes; she ended up being blue lighted to another hospital with two ambulances being sent and four paramedics wasting NHS resources because of sexist attitudes

. The BMA response re biological sex has been the nail in the coffin. Why should we take notice of these people at all when they spout such unscientific nonsense. Frankly it makes me want to do away with most of the profession. I'm sure anyone with a a degree of sense armed with AI could do better than some of the medics I've had the misfortune of dealing with

since I started researching more and learning about Annex B and the number of women raped and sexually assaulted by NHS staff I have zero trust. Remember how Saville was allowed to operate. The nevrophiliac mortuary attendant. The consultant at a hospital near me allowed to continue as a gynaecologist despite sexual assault These are the ones we know about; given how vulnerable elderly, young and mentally ill women are no doubt a lot of rapes. and assaults go undetected,

You would be utterly naive if you believed that a lot of porn sick men would not become sexually aroused by the thought of squashing ladies boobs in an often painful restrictive procedure. I would be suspicious of any man who applied for the role. the mere fact they are a man wanting to deal with women and girls in an intimate manner is a warning

I really don't understand this. We are told we can specify we want a female to do our smears. Now they are proposing men do mammograms? They'll be touching and moving our breasts around a plate of metal?? Last week we were told trans women can't come into female spaces yet this week we can have male mammographers? While I realise a few unlucky men get breast cancer surely a mammogram centre is a women's only space?
They want more women to "accept" their "invitations" to breast screening, but women will be put off by this and even less will turn up! As well, what about those who have been assaulted or raped? And religious women who would only accept a female? Having a female chaperone present would surely defeat the objects too as that's an additional salary the cash strapped NHS would have to pay. Train men if you must, but make it clear to women they're free to request a female as they do for smears. And if there is a shortage of female mammogram radiographers why doesn't the NHS investigate and see if they can help improve?

its gaslighting and grooming women to accept men for intimate care

Yup. It's another brick out of the wall of permitting women sex based rights due to privacy, dignity, decency and safety because gosh are those really inconvenient to some men.

These things sadly rarely do turn out to be innocent at root. Anyone remember that appalling document that was about how to get pedophilia accepted in society, where the first steps were all about normalising child nudity and the insults and wording to use to get the populace turned against women who retained an inconvenient grip on reality? Normalising that women shouldn't be permitted single sex however they feel/however it affects attendence because it's a bit silly of them, and practicalities, and men's rights and men are just as good, and only silly women who don't matter make a fuss, does the same job on women's rights.

This is women's healthcare, the main aim is that women turn up for it, and you'd think actually giving a damn for the patient group involved would be a priority to someone who's embraced medicine as a career.

Actually, I agree but the issue of isolated areas was raised, so I replied. My own view is that while I would be ok with a male mammographer, i understand that not every woman would and I see choice as an absolute requitement.

The timing is very suspicious. Would it be conspiratorial to think they are annoyed that men with GRCs can no longer worm their way into this line of work so as a punishment they are going to push for all men to have access. It’s a bit like “if you won’t let men who say they are women come into the ladies we will have to make all toilets unisex”. These royal societies are as captured as the unions. I wonder if the college of radiographers is subject to FOI requests?

As a breast cancer survivor I really wouldn’t mind. When I had biopsies taken just before diagnosis the ultrasound we we was male and one of the most genuine people I met who made me feel completely at ease. I’ve also had two male gynaes after possible womb cancer and they’ve also been amazing.

The end of a car park where you are the only other person in the trailer IS isolating. The sexual assaults regularly take place where someone is near by - in the next room, other side of a curtain, in busy clubs, standing outside the toilet door.