Every year, doctors in the Czech Republic diagnose almost 8,000 new cases of breast cancer and around 900 women hear the diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

Preventive screening programs are essential for the early detection of cancer, as the treatment of serious cancers is a matter of time. Even at the time of the pandemic, the oncological workplaces of the General Hospital did not stop, but often operated remotely during the spring wave. Thanks to some breakthrough moments in reimbursements, modern targeted treatment has become even more accessible to many women.

Screening preventive examinations, ie the search for early stages of cancer in healthy individuals, had to be partially reduced in the challenging pandemic year 2020. In the spring it was only a few weeks. At that time, outpatient clinics for healthy women with a genetic risk of tumors operated remotely, patients contacted healthcare professionals by e-mail or telephone, and oncologists closely monitored the results of the examinations. A good experience from this period is that telemedicine works in preventive medicine.

"Prevention has an irreplaceable role in oncology. International statistics show that 30 to 40% of tumors are preventable. If we catch them in time and perform a simple removal, we can offer the patient a complete cure. It is sometimes considered that we need to invest more money in preventive examinations. But in that case, the rule is: come ten times unnecessarily rather than late. " states the Minister of Health of the Czech Republic prof. MUDr. Petr Arenberger, DrSc., MBA.

Read more in press release.