Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

We spoke to the anxieties that would be caused by having to bring healthy women back for screening if we were to lower the age. Is there something else that can be done? The witnesses spoke about other tests. Can other tests, such as ultrasounds, be used to capture the women who are in that lower age bracket? There is also the narrative out there that age is the biggest risk factor. In some way, this may lead to a situation where not many women will present themselves when they have a lump because, in their heads, they feel that 50 and above is when they are most likely to get breast cancer. If lowering the age of mandatory screening is such a big issue economically or in terms of anxiety, what else can be done in respect of education and prevention, such as using ultrasound, but also in changing the messaging about who can be impacted and affected by breast cancer, given there are so many women under the age of 50?