Vital importance of early diagnosis of breast cancer to avoid missed opportunities to treat and save lives
Dr Liz O’Riordan, Breast Surgeon with Breast Cancer, motivational speaker and author of Under the Knife and The Complete Guide to Breast Cancer last week described the privilege of talking about the award-winning 'Change and Check' campaign on the ITV news show Lorraine Weekdays.
ITV presenter Lorraine Kelly launched the breast cancer awareness campaign in 2019 and features regular updates on her show.
In her interviews and speaking events, Dr O’Riordan regularly asks the question ‘when was the last time you checked your breasts?’ and has produced a video that shows how to do so properly.
Despite one in eight women being diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, more than half of us report not knowing the early signs of the disease.
Early diagnosis of breast cancer is vital to enable early access to treatment, resulting in improved outcomes. If you have suspected breast cancer, your GP will usually refer you to a breast clinic where the triple diagnostic assessment is likely to be offered in a single appointment, facilitating a rapid diagnosis.
At Fieldfisher, we are supporting an increasing number of clients whose care fell well below the standard expected. These clients have not received a timely biopsy at their initial breast clinic appointment and, as a result, are diagnosed with advanced cancer with palliative rather than curative treatment options. Other clients have been given false reassurance after scans have been misreported.
If you have received a late diagnosis of cancer because of failures to undertake the right diagnostic tests for any cancers, not just breast cancer, please get in touch with us for an informal initial conversation in confidence.
Lindsay Holt Lindsay.Holt@fieldfisher.com
Heidi Brotherton Heidi.Brotherton@fieldfisher.com