Villena Demands More Resources to Prevent 1,715 Women from Being Excluded from Breast Cancer Screening

One in ten women in the Elda Health Area, eligible for participation in breast cancer screening, were not called for the test. In total, 1,715 women. These figures were highlighted during the municipal plenary session held this Friday at Villena Town Hall, where it was approved to request the Department of Health to provide more resources to ensure no woman is excluded from these tests.

The proposal was approved with votes from the PSPV-PSOE, Verdes de Europa, and VOX groups, with the Popular Municipal Group abstaining. It demands that "breast cancer prevention must continue to be a public policy, with public resources and under public supervision. Therefore, it is the responsibility of all institutions, including municipalities, to defend a quality, transparent public health system with sufficient resources to ensure equal access to prevention."

The Town Hall will request the Health Department to improve the notification, communication, and attendance control system for women who, due to their age, should participate in these cancer prevention and control campaigns. The motion text included a request to the Department of Health to update "the invitation and communication system with eligible women, incorporating digital channels, reminders, and mechanisms that enhance participation and allow users to track and control their diagnostic tests."

For the spokesperson of the Socialist Group, Javier Martínez, there is "a negative trend as demonstrated by the results and a feeling of inactivity from the Department, which seems indifferent to this situation. One woman, one case, is a cause for concern: more than 1,700 are enough reason for all alarms to go off."

For the spokesperson of the Verdes por Europa Group, the Health Councillor, Alba Laserna, besides the women who do not receive communication from Health and therefore do not participate, there are other data that require a response from the Generalitat. "Public data itself tells us that in the Elda Health Area – to which Villena belongs – of the women invited to this preventive program, 25% did not participate in 2024; and another 33.5% are out of the program without having a mammogram," the councillor noted.