The Norrbotten region calls around 25,000 women every year for an examination of the breasts on mammography.
In 2019, they had 23,226 surveys, but during the pandemic last year, the same figure was 19,586.
- We suspended the business for a couple of months in the spring due to a lot of cancellations.
It was sick staff and we needed to use the resources in a different way, says Bodil Sundbom, head of care for imaging and functional medicine at the Norrbotten Region.
Risk of undiagnosed breast cancer
During the autumn, they started again, but in connection with the second wave, the next big drop came.
In addition, the intervals between each screening have become longer.
The care wants to be between 18-24 months between each visit - but that figure has become higher during the pandemic.
Bodil Sundbom says that there are risks of not walking when you are called.
- We want to encourage everyone to go for their health check, we want to discover small changes while they are easy to treat.
You do not want them to grow or that there will be a spread, she says and points out that the staff is careful with protective equipment and hygiene during the visits.