Friends of a Nova Scotia woman who died this month from Stage IV breast cancer are urging the province to update its screening policy for women with dense breast tissue.
They believe that if such a policy had been in place, Tanja Harrison could have contracted her cancer earlier.
“We really need to see the government step up. They know the evidence is there,” said Jennie Dale, executive director of Dense breasts Canada, and a friend of Harrison’s.
Dense breasts can make it more difficult for mammograms to detect tumors.
Harrison, 53, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023, despite her most recent mammogram being “clear.”
She shared her story on his profile page for the annual CIBC Run for the Cure fundraiserorganized by the Canadian Cancer Society.
“My last regular “clear” mammogram in late 2021 did not detect my cancer, and my request for additional screening was denied, as were other women in Nova Scotia with dense breasts and at higher risk,” she wrote in part.
She said she felt sick later, as the pain spread from her back to her hip and lower rib. But her doctor considered her pain to be a symptom of menopause.
“I fractured my hip in early 2023, around the same time I discovered my own tumor. Even with a scheduled biopsy, I still had to request an x-ray/CT scan from my doctor. I was ultimately diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer, with significant bone metastases,” she wrote.
On December 2, Harrison died. His obituary describes the accomplished librarian as a wonderful daughter, sister, wife, mother, aunt, niece, friend and colleague.
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“Many female cancers escape our attention”
After her diagnosis, Harrison began advocacy work with Dense Breasts Canada and became friends with the organization’s executive director, Jennie Dale.
In a tribute on Facebook, Dale said Harrison inspired his members with his “energy, dedication and actions.”
“Tanja had reason to be angry, but I never heard anger. Instead, I only heard the passionate voice of a kind and generous woman who gave her time to advocate for support for equitable access to additional screening,” she wrote.
She also pledged to honor Harrison’s memory by continuing his work.
In an interview with Global News, Dale noted that Nova Scotia is the only province where additional testing is not offered.
“Nova Scotia has always been a leader in breast cancer screening, but where Nova Scotia is really letting Nova Scotians down is when it comes to additional screening for women with dense breasts,” Dale said.
“Even when a family doctor fills out an application and sends it in, that application will be rejected. »
Rafah DiCostanzo, a former Liberal MP and friend of Harrison, was also diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023.
She, too, had negative mammogram results several times, even though she found a lump.
“The delay of not finding it in 2022 and finding it after the second lump appeared – that required me to have a mastectomy and full rounds of chemotherapy. Literally, I call it hell,” she said.
“Many women’s cancers are missed until we detect them at a later stage, at a much higher cost to their quality of life and to the government or taxpayers. »
She introduced an opposition bill — the Find It Early Act —. last March, it would have required the government to fund more detailed screening of women with dense breast tissue.
It didn’t happen.
“High risk”
In a statement, Nova Scotia’s breast cancer screening program, run out of the IWK Health Centre, said the province currently has a high-risk screening program and breast density “is integrated in many risk models.
In 2019, Nova Scotia became the first province to use software to assess breast density and automatically share mammogram test results.
Density is graded from A to D, and women in categories C and D are considered to have dense breasts.
“If women have dense breasts and a lifetime risk of breast cancer of 25% or more, they are eligible for high-risk screening with mammography and MRI,” the statement continued.
“It is important to remember that increased breast density is one of many risk factors for breast cancer. Other risk factors include age, family history, reproductive history, genetic mutations, high body mass index, etc.
But Dale says that’s not enough and not everyone with dense chests is considered “high risk.”
“We’re talking about women with dense breasts who are at high risk, but who may not be considered high risk. So these women don’t have access to additional screening and mammograms aren’t enough for them,” Dale said.
Dale and DiCostanzo said they would honor their friend Harrison and her advocacy work and continue to push for change.