Women to receive My Journey Kit on the day of breast cancer diagnosis
Around 1 in every 3 women diagnosed with breast cancer each year have their cancer detected by BreastScreen Victoria. These women will now be provided with Breast Cancer Network Australia’s (BCNA) My Journey Kit, a free information resource for newly diagnosed women.
BCNA CEO Maxine Morand says the kit provides easy to understand information that can be used to help guide treatment decisions and assist women to work through the shock of diagnosis.
BCNA aims to deliver the My Journey Kit to women as soon as possible after their diagnosis, so being able to give it to them on the day, without the need for extra phone calls or waiting for it to be delivered, provides the information when right when it is need most.
BreastScreen Victoria CEO Vicki Pridmore says the kit is an important resource for Nurse Counsellors who provide information and support to women who are given a breast cancer diagnosis.
“Research shows that providing women with information about treatment they are about to undergo reduces emotional distress and improves their physical and psychological recovery,” says Ms Pridmore.
The new joint Kit distribution agreement between BreastScreen Victoria and BCNA follows a successful six month joint trial in 2013. As part of the trial, 115 women received the resource on the day of their diagnosis at the Monash and Gippsland BreastScreen services.
60 year old Churchill woman Joan Gallagher was diagnosed with breast cancer in May this year. She says the Kit was an invaluable resource during what was a stressful and confusing time.
“The My Journey Kit is excellent. It’s written in a way that anyone can understand and it provided me with guidance and reassurance. My daughters also had a look at it too and it really helped them to understand what was going to happen,” says Ms Gallagher.
BCNA CEO Maxine Morand will present the trial findings at the BreastScreen Australia Conference at Hilton on the Park on Saturday, October 18 between 12.30-1.00pm.
BreastScreen Victoria aims to reduce deaths from breast cancer through early detection of the disease. The organisation is part of the national breast cancer screening program inviting women aged 50 to 74 to have a free breast screen every two years.
Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) is the peak national consumer organisation for Australians personally affected by breast cancer. For more information or to order a My Journey Kit call 1800 500 258 or visit www.bcna.org.au