Ontario Breast Screening Program (OBSP)
The Ontario Breast Screening Program is a province-wide screening program that aims to reduce breast cancer deaths through regular screening. The program offers screening to two different groups of people who qualify for breast cancer screening:
- people ages 40 to 74 at average risk for breast cancer
- people ages 30 to 69 at high risk for breast cancer
People over age 74 can be screened within the Ontario Breast Screening Program; however, they are encouraged to make a personal decision about breast cancer screening in consultation with a family doctor or nurse practitioner.
Benefits of an Organized Cancer Screening Program
Organized cancer screening programs, such as the Ontario Breast Screening Program, provide important quality benefits by:
- inviting people to participate in screening
- reminding screening participants when it is time for their next screening test
- telling participants their screening test results
- advising participants to follow up after an abnormal test result
- tracking participants throughout screening and diagnosis processes
- helping participants coordinate the next steps in their screening process if needed (e.g., genetic assessments for the High Risk Ontario Breast Screening Program)
- measuring program quality and performance