Greece resumes breast cancer screening programme

The breast cancer screening programme resumes in Greece on Tuesday, with the first text messages being sent to eligible women inviting them to undergo free mammograms.

Almost all preventive screening programmes, including those for cardiovascular diseases, are expected to be reactivated by the end of the month, Deputy Health Minister of Greece Marios Themistocleous has announced.

Speaking to ACTION24, Themistocleous described the Health Ministry’s shift towards prevention as a key pillar of its policy, CE Report quotes ANA-MPA.

Regarding funding, he said the programmes are now financed through national resources.

"The funding has been secured and there is no problem. Mammograms will continue to be carried out and text messages will be sent as normal," he said.

Highlighting the importance of early diagnosis, he noted: "Breast cancer affects one in eight women. The most important thing, however, is that with early diagnosis, the cure rate exceeds 95%. If we find anything suspicious, we should contact our doctor immediately. We must not skip our mammograms. Mammograms save lives."

Themistocleous clarified that text messages will be sent to women who have not undergone a mammogram within the recommended screening interval, rather than to those who have had one recently.

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