The pandemic response to COVID-19 has required interruptions to routine screening for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer. Through the collective efforts of Albertans, we are helping to slow the spread of COVID-19. This has given AHS confidence to begin resuming breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening appointments. This will be done using a cautious and phased approach, following all public health and safety considerations.

Mammograms

As of May 19th, some health clinics began resuming routine breast cancer screening.  All clinics have adopted enhanced health and safety practices. To book an appointment, please contact the clinic where you would like to get your mammogram. (You can find a list of available clinics near you)  Ask when they will be reopening and what safety measures you will need to follow to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. This may include activities like completing a pre-screening assessment to make sure you are feeling well, wearing a face mask, or waiting in your car until you’re called to come in. These actions will help keep you and others safe while making sure you continue to get the health services you need.

Pap and FIT Tests

Patients are asked to contact their healthcare provider to determine when regular Pap tests should resume. FIT tests will resume at a later date. This will allow lab services to focus on COVID-19 testing.  Updates will be provided on the website when timelines are confirmed. If you have an urgent concern such as a new symptom or a previous screen requiring immediate follow-up, contact your healthcare provider. Depending on the concern, you may be seen before routine screening services resume.

Thank you for your continued patience and efforts to help slow the spread of COVID-19. We know this is an adjustment, but together we are keeping each other safe!

Resumption of Colonoscopy Procedures

Patients needing a colonoscopy: Cases will be prioritized based upon patient’s general health and the length of time they have waited for a procedure.  If you’ve been waiting for a procedure and your health has changed, it’s important to let your family doctor know so that you can be reassessed.  Endoscopy clinics will be in touch with you in the upcoming weeks to discuss booking your appointment. FIT testing will resume in Alberta at a later date.

Abnormal Pap Test Result – Next Steps

Patients who received an abnormal Pap test result letter: Please contact your healthcare provider to discuss your results. They’ll let you know what the next steps will be, including the need for follow-up appointments.

Update May 25 2020 – In response to the COVID-19 situation, AHS Screening Programs will continue to only send abnormal results letters to eligible Albertans. All other letters, including invitations, normal results and reminder letters, are postponed at this time. AHS Screening Programs will resume its correspondence program in the near future.

March 2020 – Due to the evolving COVID-19 situation, beginning March 16, 2020, AHS Screening Programs will only be sending abnormal results letters to eligible Albertans. All other letters, including invitation, normal results and reminder letters, will be postponed until further notice. If you have any questions, please contact us at 1-866-727-3926.

Service on the go – Mobile cancer screening program saving lives
Story by Heather Kipling, AHS

Though she admits it’s not one of the most comfortable things she has ever done, May Ann Swanson is quick to point out that going for a screening mammogram has certainly been among the most important.

Now a regular patient when Screen Test’s mobile mammography units roll into Wainwright, Swanson couldn’t be happier with the service that provided early detection of breast cancer and gave her the best chances of a full recovery.

“I go every year and I swear by it,” says Swanson, who had both her mother and mother-in-law before her have lumps in their breasts detected by a mammogram. Swanson began using Screen Test’s mobile units in 2002. Only four years later, a screening mammogram detected the small lump in her breast, which was already spreading. “When the surgeon removed the lump, it also required the removal of 12 lymph nodes. If it hadn’t been found then, it could have been much worse for me.”

Providing early detection of breast cancer and other breast health concerns is at the very heart of Alberta Health Services’ Screen Test, which operates under the umbrella of the Alberta Breast Cancer Screening Program. Screen Test offers screening mammograms at two fixed locations — one in Edmonton and one in Calgary — and uses mobile units to visit more than 120 rural communities annually.

The mobile units are 53-foot semi-trailers, each one a self-contained screening facility complete with a reception room, dressing rooms and an exam room equipped with state-of-the-art digital mammography units.

“For women in rural communities, particularly those who do not have easy access to mammography facilities, the mobile units give them the ability to get the same service as women in larger centres without having to travel,” says Screen Test manager Joan Hauber. “We’re able to increase the number of women actually having regular mammograms and the more women who have regular mammograms, the better chance we have to detect cancers early. And early detection is so important. It can reduce the chance of dying from breast cancer by 30 per cent.”

Screening mammography is the only tool that has been proven to significantly reduce the mortality from breast cancer. A screening mammogram can detect a breast cancer up to two to three years before it would otherwise be detected by the patient or their doctor.

Screen Test targets women 50 to 74; when women in Alberta turn 50, they receive an invitation letter to undergo a screening mammogram. It is recommended women in the target age have a screening mammogram at least every two years.

For breast cancer survivors like Swanson, it’s a recommendation she champions. “It’s not the most comfortable thing you’ll ever do but it is so important for your health. It gives you the best chances,” she says. “I can’t say ‘thank you’ enough for what Screen Test did for me.”

Learn more about Screen Test.

January 2019

The new resource, Informed Decision Making and Breast Density booklet gives important information on what breast density is and why it matters for breast cancer screening. This resource shares pros and cons of screening to help women make informed decisions about whether or not screening is right for them. View this resource.