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Background: The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted cancer health care in several countries, with delays in the detection and treatment of breast and cervical cancer. The objective of this study is to analyze and compare the screening, diagnosis and treatment of breast and cervical cancer in the pre-COVID period and during the COVID-19 period., Methods: Cross-sectional study with secondary data collected from the Mortality Information System (SIM), Hospital Information System (SIH), Ambulatory Information System (SIA) and the Oncology Panel (PO) of breast cancer notifications with ICD C50.0 to C50.9 and cervix ICD C53.0 to C53.9, The analyzed period before the pandemic was from March 1 to October 1, 2019, and during the pandemic from March 1 to October 1, 2020. The period from 2013 to 2022 was also analyzed with the same information, including the number of diagnoses, treatments, and deaths from breast cancer and cervical cancer. The study population consisted of Brazilian women aged 25 to 70 years. In order to compare categorical variables between periods, the Chi-Square or Fisher's Exact tests, and Mann-Whitney U tests were applied, and the Poisson Regression model was applied to model the number of reported cases of COVID-19 and the amount of procedures., Results: There was a decrease in the number of mammograms and cytopathological exams during COVID-19, as well as a decrease in cases of breast and cervical cancer. The Poisson regression showed that the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases caused a decrease in the number of breast cytopathological examinations, cervical-vaginal cytopathological examinations/microflora and screening, diagnosis, initiation of treatment for breast cancer and deaths from this disease. Meanwhile, in some regions of Brazil, as the number of Covid-19 increased, there was a significantly increase in the number of mammograms performed and cervical cancer diagnoses., Conclusions: The COVID-19 period in 2020 significantly impacted screening, diagnosis, treatment for breast and cervical cancer., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among women., Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze time trends in overall mortality from breast cancer in Brazil, Brazilian regions and States., Methods: This is an exploratory study, of the time series of deaths from breast cancer contained in the Mortality Information System (SIM), of women living in Brazil, Brazilian regions and States, from 1996 to 2013. For the trend analysis, the polynomial regression model was used, and a significant trend was considered when the estimated model obtained a p value <0.05., Results: There was a tendency of increased mortality from breast cancer in Brazilian women (average increase of 0.18 per year; p <0.001), with regional differences, particularly in the age group 20-49 years (0.07 per year; p <0.001). The age group 50-69 years remained constant but had high average rates (37.14)., Conclusion: More effective planning is needed to focus on the different scenarios of the Brazilian regions. Screening strategies for the incidence and mortality from breast cancer must also be rethought according to age group in the country., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Purpose: To analyze risk factors for postmenopausal breast cancer., Methods: The present casecontrol study included 600 women treated at a cancer center reference hospital in a municipality in the South of Brazil., Results: Totals of 100 patients and 500 control subjects were evaluated. The mean age of the women was 52.5 ± 11.9 years; the average was 57.4 ± 11.8 years, and the average age of the control subjects was 51.5 ± 11.7 years. The risk factors for breast cancer that were considered included an age ≥ 40 years, postmenopausal status, a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m2, and reduced physical activity. Variables like postmenopausal status and an obese BMI were associated with cases of breast cancer. Women who were postmenopausal or obese were 3.80 or 1.80 times more likely to develop breast cancer, respectively, and physically inactive women were 1.72 times more likely to develop breast cancer., Conclusions: Obesity and postmenopausal status are associated with the occurrence of breast cancer in this population. Being over 40 years of age was also a statistically significant factor for postmenopausal women.

Background: To investigate the prevalence of and factors associated with performance of annual mammography by women above 40 years of age., Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted at an oncology reference service in Southern Brazil from October 2013 to October 2014 with 525 women aged 40 years or older., Results: The prevalence of annual mammography was 54.1%; annual mammographic screening was performed for women without private medical insurance, who were under hormone replacement therapy and who had used contraception in the past. An association was found between non-performance of breast clinical and self-examination and non-performance of mammographic screening., Conclusions: Use of mammography for breast cancer screening in the public health care setting proved to be accessible; nevertheless, the proportion of screened women was low, and they exhibited poor adherence to the basic measures of care recommended for breast assessment. Thus, control of breast cancer requires implementing actions targeting the population most vulnerable to non-adherence to screening in addition to continuously monitoring and assessing that population to reduce the prevalence of this disease.

Background: The purpose of the article was to analyze the years of potential life lost (YPLL) of women who died from breast and cervical cancer in the State of Parana, Southern Brazil. This was a temporal trend study (2000 to 2010) about the coefficients of mortality and the years of potential life lost in women aged 20 to 70 years., Materials and Methods: Data were obtained through the database of the Department of the Unified Health System (DATASUS) and the National Mortality Information System., Results: There was a loss of 125.075 YPLL due to breast cancer, with an average of 11.370 YPLL. Regarding cervical cancer, the figure obtained was 91.625 YPLL from 2000 to 2010, with an average of 8.329 YPLL. Increased risk of death from breast cancer was observed for women aged 50 to 59 years, with a significant increase among those in the age group from 40 to 49 years. There was an increased rate of cervical cancer among women 40 to 69 years., Conclusions: The risk of death grows with increasing age, being higher from 40 years. Prevention is paramount for both cancers. Thus, preventive measures are required and a reassessment of political strategies should be adopted.

This study was conducted to analyze the prevalence of non-performance of mammography, and associated factors, among postmenopausal women. This analytical, exploratory, cross-sectional study, of a domicile population inquiry type, was performed in the municipality of Maringa, Parana, Brazil. A total of 456 women were interviewed, aged 45 to 69 years, who presented with natural menopause and cessation of menstruation for at least twelve months. Statistical associations were found between the non-performance of mammography and schooling of less than seven years, paid employment, sedentary lifestyle, smoking, the non-use of hormone replacement therapy, not having consulted a doctor in the previous year, not having consulted a gynecologist, lacking a family history of breast cancer, not having performed the Papanicolaou test, not having performed clinical breast examination, and not having difficult access to health services. After logistic regression analysis, not performing mammography was associated with reports of a fair or bad health status. The study data revealed factors "responsible" for the non-performance of mammography, and the results should contributing to improvement/enhancement of healthy behaviour of Brazilian women in the post-menopausal phase.

This study analyzed the prevalence of secondary breast cancer prevention and associated factors in women 40 to 69 years of age in Maringá, Paraná State, Brazil. Prevalence was 64.5% for breast self-examination, 71.5% for clinical examination, and 79% for mammography. The data suggest that age, schooling, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, and prior hormone replacement therapy influenced the rates of the three types of examination. Preventive practices were significantly more common among women of higher socioeconomic status. Proper orientation and performance of preventive measures and tests should be at the reach of all women in the highest-risk age bracket, thereby decreasing late diagnosis and avoidable deaths and increasing the odds of curing breast cancer.

The objective of this study is to identify the frequency in which the early diagnosis of breast and cervical cancer takes place in the municipality of Guarapuava, Paraná. A cross-sectional study with population basis was carried out including 885 women with the minimum age of 18 years old, in the period from October to December of 2006. The sample calculation considered the trust level of 95% and the error margin of 3%. The software Statistica version 7.1 was used for the data analysis, considering the level of significance of 5%. Breast self-examination was performed by 63% of the interviewees and clinical examination by 49%. The mammography was performed by less than one forth of the sample. The prevention of cervical cancer was practiced by most of the women (80%). The conclusion was that the studied women from the sample perform preventive exams of breast cancer with less frequency, when compared to cervical cancer preventive exams.

The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of the risk factors for breast cancer among women between 40 and 69 years old in the city of Maringá, Paraná State, Brazil. An analytical, exploratory and cross-sectional study was carried out through a population research at homes in Maringá. The sample was composed of 439 women between 40 and 69 years old. The data were collected by home interviews, stored using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software and presented in tables as absolute and relative frequency. The predominant ethnical group was Caucasian with an average age of 52 years. Among risk factors identified in the present study, an expressive number of overweight women were found. It is important and necessary to put in practice actions that identify the modifiable risk factors for the development of breast tumors in order to reduce morbidity and mortality levels due to this pathology.

This study aims at analyzing the mortality behavior by breast cancer in women from Maringá city, Paraná state, Brazil, from 1990 to 2004. It is a quantitative, descriptive and transversal cut study. The data were collected from the Information System on Mortality of the Health Ministry where the following variables were considered: age, educational level and race/ color groups. The result showed 170 deaths by breast cancer in the period studied gradually ascending during the first triennium, decreasing in the second triennium and soon rising until 2004. For the period of eight years it was noticed an increase of obits predominantly in women aged between 40 and 69 years and presenting an educational level of eight completed years at school. There was an expressive increase of mortality in white women but not statistically significant. This study suggests immediate preventive measures in order to reduce the number of deaths due to this disease

This study analyzes the health of Kaingáng women in the Faxinal indigenous territory in Paraná State, Brazil, with regard to risk factors for breast cancer. A descriptive and exploratory investigation was undertaken that included 95.4% of females 20 years or over. Data showed that 92.3% of Kaingáng women reported breastfeeding for more than one year; 41.4% had more than 5 children; mean age at menarche was 13.4 years; 61.5% had never heard of breast cancer; breast self-examination was only performed by 2.9%; 81.7% reported no clinical breast examination by a physician; 99% had never had a mammogram. No cases of breast or non-breast cancer were reported. The study highlights protective factors against carcinogenesis and the absence of key risk factors like hormone replacement therapy for more than five years and alcohol consumption in most Kaingáng women.