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Emphasizing the Importance of Breast Cancer Education and Screenings
Registered nurse Patricia Jakel emphasizes the importance of educating patients on evolving breast cancer research and the need for routine screenings.
At the recent 42nd Annual Miami Breast Cancer Conference and the Educated Patient Breast Cancer Summit, registered nurse Patricia Jakel sat down for an interview with CURE about the value of these meetings in keeping patients informed about the latest advancements in breast cancer care.
In the interview, Jakel, who served as an advance practice nurse in the Solid Tumor Program at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), UCLA Health, prior to retiring, emphasized the importance of educating patients on evolving breast cancer research and the need for routine screenings.
Transcript:
I think it's important to educate [and update] the public. Why shouldn't these women have access to all of this great information that we're getting sitting in [on all of these presentations at the conference this weekend]? It's great. We don't have to go through every single study for patients with HER2-low disease, for example, but I think that saying, “Hey, this is the new work [that is available] and this is where it might be going” is important. [Patients] are like big sponges because this is not my first year [presenting at the meeting]. [The patients] just want all of that information, so I think that that's critical.
I was so glad to see that NFL commercial about getting your mammography and getting your screening done [because] I think just getting the word out there [can make a difference]. One in eight women will have breast cancer [in their lifetime] and every time I turn around, someone is saying, “Hey, can you talk to a friend of a friend, or my sister” or other nurses and coworkers call me and say, “Hey, I was just diagnosed with breast cancer.” It's very pervasive, and I think the more that we can educate people, and the more that the public sees us educating people, I think it is to our advantage.
Transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
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