Detected in time, breast, colon or cervix cancer can be treated before it worsens and becomes deadly. This is the message that health institutions were trying on this Tuesday, February 4, World Day for Cancer. Three, these diseases are responsible for around 30,000 deaths each year; Death which very often could have been avoided if they had been the subject of screening and fast management.
Several studies just disseminated by Public Health France make it possible to draw up a panorama of screening for these three cancers per region. Some inequalities are obvious immediately.
In some regions such as Hauts-de-France or Corsica, the rate of coverage for screening for these three cancers is systematically lower than the national average. “The explanation factors are multiple and different from one disease to another, observes Stéphanie Barre-Pierrel, coordinator Evaluation of screenings at Public Health France, sometimes, they are due to territorial inequalities in the supply of care, Other times, they are the fruit of socio-economic inequalities. ” This is particularly the case with detection of cervical cancer, a “very socially marked” disease notes the specialist, since it essentially affects women who have no regular gynecological monitoring.
The World Health Organization set a target of 70 % of women detected before the age of 35 and again before the age of 45. The coverage rate is almost 60 % today (an increase in a point compared to the period 2015-2017). For Stéphanie Barre-Pierrel, “it is very preventable and eradicable cancer, provided you vaccinate the young population and closely follow the population that does not have it.”
Decrease breast cancer screening
61,000 cases and 12,000 deaths: these are the figures for the incidence of breast cancer in France in 2023, making it the deadliest female cancer today. Over the period 2021-2022, the screening coverage rate is 60 %, a figure down 2 points compared to the period 2016-2017. This coverage rate remains nevertheless in “the average of European countries” according to public health France. Again, the agency recalls the importance of being tested every two years from the age of 50 and discussing screening regularly with its attending physician.
The scenario is a little different with colorectal cancer, which today represents the second cause of mortality by cancer in France (behind lung cancer). Each year, there are 47,000 new cases and 17,000 deaths. “In France in 2022, almost one in two eligible people was covered by a modality of screening” of this cancer, explains Public Health France in a study, pointing that “the coverage rate in France is among the lowest of comparable countries and reveals important geographic disparities. “
Note that European institutions recommend reaching a screening rate of 65 % for this cancer, around 20 points more than the current coverage rate (and up to three times more than the coverage rate in Guyana). From the age of 50, “screening is every two years, insists Stéphanie Barre-Pierrel, and the kits are available in pharmacies, at your attending physician or by ordering directly on The dedicated site. “