Location
D.P. Culp Center Ballroom
Start Date
4-5-2024 9:00 AM
End Date
4-5-2024 11:30 AM
Poster Number
120
Name of Project's Faculty Sponsor
Stephen Blankenship
Faculty Sponsor's Department
Medical Education
Competition Type
Competitive
Type
Poster Presentation
Presentation Category
Health
Abstract or Artist's Statement
Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations & Current Practices in the ETSU Health System Kristina Warf (MS2), Dr. Steven Blankenship MD James H. Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women (excluding skin cancers), and causes the second highest number of cancer deaths in women in the U.S. The most effective prevention of breast cancer deaths is early detection, and the most effective method of early detection is regular screenings, according to the American Cancer Society. There are many differing recommendations on what exactly these regular screenings should look like. It is agreed upon that regular mammography screenings are the most effective way to reduce breast cancer deaths among most populations but, the recommendations and guidelines for screening for breast cancer in average risk women differs between medical organizations and specialties. This dissonance has the potential to lead to confusion among physicians, distrust from patients, and potentially less screening for women. Current recommendations from medical organizations like ACOG, the USPSTF, and ACS were reviewed and summarized for this project. As of 2015, the USPSTF, along with other health care organizations, removed self breast exams (BSE) and clinical breast exams (CBE) from their recommended screening guidelines. In fact as of their 2009 guideline release, the USPSTF recommends against teaching patients to perform BSE’s and cautions against the CBE. This recommendation comes in spite of evidence suggesting that a majority of breast cancers are found by self examination, whether accidental or purposeful. Our survey found that ETSU practitioners reported that they are still teaching BSE and even more reported still performing CBE. We concluded that further, longitudinal studies will be necessary to assess the effects of the removal of these practices from screening guidelines. Furthermore, we suggest that these studies should focus on the effects on populations who are less likely to be adherent or subject to recommended mammography screening guidelines.
Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations & Current Practices in the ETSU Health System
D.P. Culp Center Ballroom
Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations & Current Practices in the ETSU Health System Kristina Warf (MS2), Dr. Steven Blankenship MD James H. Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women (excluding skin cancers), and causes the second highest number of cancer deaths in women in the U.S. The most effective prevention of breast cancer deaths is early detection, and the most effective method of early detection is regular screenings, according to the American Cancer Society. There are many differing recommendations on what exactly these regular screenings should look like. It is agreed upon that regular mammography screenings are the most effective way to reduce breast cancer deaths among most populations but, the recommendations and guidelines for screening for breast cancer in average risk women differs between medical organizations and specialties. This dissonance has the potential to lead to confusion among physicians, distrust from patients, and potentially less screening for women. Current recommendations from medical organizations like ACOG, the USPSTF, and ACS were reviewed and summarized for this project. As of 2015, the USPSTF, along with other health care organizations, removed self breast exams (BSE) and clinical breast exams (CBE) from their recommended screening guidelines. In fact as of their 2009 guideline release, the USPSTF recommends against teaching patients to perform BSE’s and cautions against the CBE. This recommendation comes in spite of evidence suggesting that a majority of breast cancers are found by self examination, whether accidental or purposeful. Our survey found that ETSU practitioners reported that they are still teaching BSE and even more reported still performing CBE. We concluded that further, longitudinal studies will be necessary to assess the effects of the removal of these practices from screening guidelines. Furthermore, we suggest that these studies should focus on the effects on populations who are less likely to be adherent or subject to recommended mammography screening guidelines.