Did you miss a screening for breast cancer due to the pandemic? Time to reschedule

Palm Coast Observer
Your Town

from: AdventHealth Central Florida Division Corporate Communications

October is always a time when physicians advocate breast cancer screenings, but this year that message is even more important because women have missed mammograms and other care as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Dr. Lisa Minton, a surgeon who specializes in breast cancer at AdventHealth Medical Group.

“Many patients chose to avoid screenings in 2020 and 2021,” said Minton on AdventHealth's Oct. 14 News Briefing.

She said doctors are expecting an increase in potentially preventable deaths over the next 10 years because of missed early detection.

“Early is better and potentially preventative,” she said, noting that goes not just for breast cancer, but other cancers as well.

AdventHealth is continuing to enroll more women in clinical trials and using advanced treatments to provide the best outcomes.

Minton noted the personally tailored treatments that have come as a result of testing tumor tissue for genetic markers as well as assessing individual patient risk for breast cancer and other cancers through genetic sequencing.

Women in need of screening who are uninsured or underinsured can schedule a mammogram with AdventHealth at a reduced cost of $30.

While the number of COVID-19 cases continues to decrease, Minton recommended people going through cancer treatment make sure they get the vaccine to protect themselves while their immune system may be compromised.

On Thursday the number of patients hospitalized at AdventHealth hospitals across Central Florida dropped to about 270.