Andalusian Breast Cancer Screening Crisis: Investigations Open Amidst Controversy

The ongoing breast cancer screening crisis has taken a serious turn in Andalusia, with the Prosecutor's Office launching two investigations within 48 hours regarding the alleged mismanagement of mammograms. This situation came to light following reports from the Association of Women with Breast Cancer of Seville (Amama), which revealed that 2,317 women were affected, significantly higher than the initial estimate of fewer than 2,000. Antonio Sanz, the Minister of Health, chaired a commission in Seville designed to oversee the issues surrounding the Breast Cancer Screening Plan, aiming to rectify the problems of late diagnoses. It was reported that 1,778 of the affected women have already undergone the necessary tests as indicated by radiologists. The remaining women are scheduled for appointments before November 30. During the recent meeting aimed at addressing the crisis, it was noted that around 90 of the cases flagged came from the Virgen del Rocío hospital in Seville. This meeting, however, was held without the presence of Amama, and included two officials from the Andalusian Health Service (SAS) who defended the integrity of the clinical processes. They faced accusations of manipulating mammograms within the digital platforms ClicSalud and Diraya, which are used by patients to view their clinical histories. In response to Amama's complaints, President Juan Manuel Moreno firmly denied any wrongdoing, attributing accusations to politically motivated opposition efforts to discredit his government ahead of upcoming elections. However, the officials from SAS struggled to explain anomalies where women's previous mammograms had disappeared temporarily during IT system failures, raising more questions than answers. Maribel Acebal, head of the breast units at SAS, asserted that technically, it is impossible to delete images stored on their servers, emphasizing the system's traceability and the integrity of the clinical data. This claim was met with skepticism, particularly in light of the peculiar disappearances of marked mammograms during the crisis. Luis Santiago Sánchez, head of Digital Infrastructure at SAS, also defended the system amid rising public concern, explaining that the platform was not designed to handle the surge in inquiries that followed Amama’s complaint. He indicated that system capacity will be increased to prevent future crashes but suggested some of the public's confusion about their clinical histories might stem from misinterpretations of technical errors. As investigations proceed, the focus remains on ensuring that the early breast cancer detection system, which processes up to 485,000 voluntary mammograms annually for women aged 49 to 71, maintains the highest standards of quality and transparency. The developments in this case underscore the critical nature of timely cancer screenings and the importance of trust in healthcare systems, as patients and advocates call for accountability and robust oversight. Related Sources: • Source 1 • Source 2