Halifax-area women say mammogram bookings stretching into 2027 raise fears that breast cancers could be found later than they should be.
Women trying to book routine mammograms in the Halifax area are facing appointment dates deep into 2027, prompting fears that delayed screening could mean some breast cancers are found later and are harder to treat.
Cynthia McCutcheon said she called last week hoping to arrange a September appointment and was startled when she was told the next available date was in July 2027. She said she first thought the month being offered was too soon, then realized the year was the problem.
“I think it’s unacceptable,” McCutcheon said, adding that she worries women’s health is not being treated as a priority.
According to the CBC report, the earliest appointment in the region as of last week was in August 2027 at Cobequid Community Health Centre. The Dartmouth site was booking into September 2027, while the clinic at Halifax Shopping Centre was booking into October 2027.
Those dates stand in sharp contrast with Nova Scotia’s posted wait-time figures. The province lists the median wait for a screening appointment at the Halifax clinic as 73 days, and up to 287 days for patients in the 90th percentile.
The IWK Health Centre, which runs Nova Scotia’s provincial breast screening program, declined an interview request and provided a statement. It said the “most significant factor impacting wait times” is a national shortage of medical radiation technologists, and said about one in three diagnostics and screening jobs in its mammography department are vacant.
The health centre said wait times vary across the province depending on local resources and staffing. It encouraged patients seeking earlier appointments to consider travelling to South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater or using mobile clinics.
For some patients, that is not a simple option. Halifax resident Cheryl Coolen, 58, said she does not drive but is likely to have to travel for her next checkup. Coolen said she has cystic breasts, has needed mammograms since she was a teenager and now requires checks every six months after finding a lump last year.
“How many people are going undiagnosed with what have you in this province because they can’t get any appointment for diagnostics? It’s appalling, actually,” Coolen said.
The stakes are high in a province already facing serious breast cancer outcomes. The Canadian Cancer Society says Nova Scotia has the highest death rates for breast cancer cases in the country. It estimates one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime and projects 190 deaths from the disease in Nova Scotia in 2026.
The IWK did not address questions about whether Nova Scotia’s new One Person One Record electronic system has contributed to the backlog. For now, patients are being left to search for earlier openings, travel if they can, or keep calling in hopes of a cancellation.
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