Sask. Cancer Agency says mammogram wait times vary across the province, but patients say options unclear
CBC
The Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) says it is working to ensure women in the province have access to breast cancer screening and biopsies in as timely a manner as possible, but some patients say the system isn't working fast enough.
The province recently announced it would gradually lower the age limit for screening mammograms to 40 from 50. Anyone age 47 or above can now book a screening mammogram without a doctor's referral and the limit will drop to 45 in June. Younger people with risks like family history can also talk to their doctor about getting a referral for a screening.
The SCA says anyone eligible for a screening mammogram has the option to book at any of the province's screening facilities and wait times vary in different cities.
"We have two permanent sites in Regina and Saskatoon. Then we also offer screening in Prince Albert, North Battleford, Yorkton, Lloydminster, Moose Jaw, Swift Current, as well as we have a mobile bus that travels around," Leah Palmer, manager of early detection at the SCA, told host Leisha Grebinski on CBC's Blue Sky.
The SCA said that in Regina, screening mammograms are booked into November 2025, but in Prince Albert you can get in "quite quickly," and in Moose Jaw you'll be put on a list and booked in when an appointment becomes available.
April Barry, who lives in rural Saskatchewan and can travel for breast screening, said it was never made clear to her that she could book anywhere in the province.
"I was never provided the option to travel anywhere else," she said.
Barry has a family history of breast cancer and has been getting an annual mammogram for the last 17 years. She said that for years, she would call in January and get booked for May.
Then the pandemic came and threw a wrench into the health-care system. Barry said it has been backed up ever since. She last called to book her annual mammogram in October and was told she needed to wait a whole year until October 2025.
Barry said it's "absolutely unacceptable" that someone with a family history has to wait 12 months to get screened.
Louise Fedirko, 72, lives in Regina and went for her annual mammogram in December 2024. It found a mass that needed further investigation.
She had another mammogram and an ultrasound, and was then advised to get a biopsy, which would determine if she has cancer, in January. It's been more than a month since then and she still has no idea when she can get the test.
"I might not have breast cancer. I don't know. But the torture of going for months not knowing … it's hard to describe," she said. "I wake up in the middle of the night completely soaking wet, shaking, and wondering … I just don't know."
Fedirko said she tried calling the local breast cancer assessment centre and was told the backlog is so long that there wasn't a date or a timeline for when she could get a biopsy.
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