Breast Cancer Screening Austria

Breast cancer is currently the most frequent cancer and the most frequent cause of cancer-induced deaths in women in Europe. Demographic trends indicate a continuing increase of this substantial public health problem. Systematic early detection through screening, effective diagnostic pathways and optimal treatment hold promise to substantially lower current breast cancer mortality rates and reduce the burden of this disease in the population. In order to obtain high quality services, experts from all over Europe have laid down principles of training, specialisation, technical requirements, multidisciplinary team-working, documentation and evaluation in the 'European guidelines for quality assurance in breast cancer screening and diagnosis' which are currently available in the fourth edition.

The European Parliament has called on all EU member states to make the fight against breast cancer a health policy priority and to develop and implement effective strategies for improved preventive health care encompassing screening, diagnosis and treatment throughout Europe. In Austria the Bundesgesundheitskommission has decided in December 2005 to install two co-ordination centres - the GÖG/ÖBIG and the Hauptverband der österreichischen Sozialversicherungsträger - and to implement the EU guidelines via pilot projects. Six Bundesländer have declared their interest to implement such a project. The whole process is to be documented according to a Minimal Data Set developed by GÖG/ÖBIG. The results will be evaluated in 2008.