Hansard

Forgive me, I almost forgot Malcolm Chisholm.

It would be a great signal for MSPs to walk the walk. Many of us, both male and female, have donned our pink feathered bras, hats and other more interesting items, some of which are, frankly, indescribable but all pink, in support of breast cancer awareness month. The stories that we heard were moving and dignified—from the initial shock of diagnosis, to the challenges of treatment and the positive stories of survival. We constantly need to remind ourselves of why this matters.

Yes, Scotland’s cancer record is continuing to improve and the fact that the survival rates of many cancers are increasing is to be celebrated. However, we should attribute part of that success to the increase in early diagnosis, to health education programmes aimed at encouraging earlier presentation and referral and to the raised awareness that is due to initiatives such as breast cancer awareness month.

We know that the earlier a cancer is recognised, the greater the chance of its being cured. That is why organisations such as Breakthrough Breast Cancer play such a key role. By sending out the simple message of TLC—touch, look and check—it is helping women themselves to identify problems earlier and ultimately helping to save lives across the country.

Cancer, though, is still a major issue that affects many of us in Scotland and breast cancer is a particular problem. It is the most common cancer among Scottish women: nearly 4,500 women are diagnosed every year, and around 1,000 die annually from the disease. I hope that we can do even more to ensure that more survive in the future. It is vital that we make every effort to reduce that number, and early detection programmes are simply the best way to do that.

Education is key. I found the statistics from Breakthrough Breast Cancer particularly appalling because they showed that only 3 per cent of women know that there are five or more different signs and symptoms of breast cancer. What is even more appalling is that 62 per cent of women do not check regularly, which is an easy thing to do. Scotland’s one-year survival rates are lower than those of other European countries, particularly Nordic countries. That is largely due to late presentation, because we do not check and we do not respond early enough.

In my view, breast-screening programmes are essential. Linda Fabiani referred to the debate about overdiagnosis and overtreatment, but that debate should be set clearly in the context of the impressive number of women who are diagnosed and treated successfully. Breast-screening programmes need to stay.

We had a debate earlier today, which was quite angry at points, about universal programmes versus targeting. However, we need to do both. We have a fine example of a universal screening programme, but we need to target disadvantaged areas more, because the risk of breast cancer is greater there. Women from deprived areas are less likely to be diagnosed early and have a lower survival rate than those in the most affluent areas. Therefore, we must do more to ensure that we reach those who live in disadvantaged communities.

I commend the Scottish Government for its current advertising campaign, which I think is fantastic. There is controversy about showing breasts on television and, dare I say it, even in newspapers. However, as Audrey Birt of Breakthrough Breast Cancer has said, “Get over it.” If it helps to save lives, people should indeed get over it and support the campaign.

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