Effective Breast Cancer Prevention Requires A Primary Care Advocate, Expert Says

The primary care role in breast cancer prevention is the role the frontline health care professionals play in all cancer prevention: ensuring that individuals in their care are current with all health screenings appropriate for their age and level of risk.

Understanding how best to communicate with women about a worrisome breast cancer screening outcome falls under the category of prevention, said Diana Miglioretti, PhD, in a recent conversation with Patient Care.® Miglioretti led research that found women were less likely to show up for future screening mammography after receiving a false positive result. While the reasons are not clear based on this study, the result is a vital reminder that reassurance and education from a trusted health care professional can make a difference in patient behavior. Miglioretti explains more in the video above.

Diana Miglioretti, PhD, is professor and division chief of biostatistics in the University of California Davis School of Medicine's department of public health sciences and an affiliate investigator at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute. Miglioretti co-leads the US Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium, a network of breast imaging registries with information collected on more than 13 million breast imaging examinations since 1994.