Screening is failing to reach too many women from immigrant commmunities. Understanding why is the only way we can save lives
Four years ago I met a woman in the street. I was doing research on why so many immigrant women in Sweden don’t have mammograms. Had she received an invitation for an appointment? ”Yes, but I’ve never gone to hospital to have a mammogram,” the 53-year-old replied. When I asked why, she said why would she go to a hospital to see a doctor when she was healthy and didn’t have any symptoms?
A few months ago I bumped into her again, this time at a bus stop near Karolinska hospital in Stockholm. I didn’t recognise her at first when she approached me. She said she had just been for breast cancer treatment. Recalling our first meeting, she said she now understood why she should have gone for a mammogram, but it was too late. The doctors had done everything they could, but the cancer had already spread.
Fatuma Mohamed is a health communicator who helps immigrant communities to access health services in Stockholm
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