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The use of sensory perception of blind and visually impaired masseurs for the purpose of early-stage breast cancer screening by palpation (the “Breast-POL” project)
Affiliations- Department of Health Promotion and Postgraduate Education of the National Institute of Public Health — National Institute of Hygiene, Warszawa, Poland, Poland
- Department of Epidemiology of the Medical University of Warsaw, Warszawa, Poland, Poland
- 2nd Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the Medical University of Warsaw, Warszawa, Poland, Poland
- Duchess Anna Mazowiecka Public Teaching Hospital, Warszawa, Poland
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Abstract
Introduction. Methodological assumptions as well as the initial stage of the execution of the project entitled “Breast-POL” — the use of sensory perception of blind and visually impaired masseurs for the purpose of breast cancer screening by palpation were presented.
Materials and methods. A list of incentives to conduct this methodologically adequate study includes: 1. Encouraging and widely disseminated German reports (these reports, however, were of high generality and they did not provide the adequate methodology); 2. Theoretical data on the hypercompensation of other senses than vision in the blind; 3. Preliminary information on the involvement of the blind in breast cancer screening by palpation in developing countries.
Results. Compared to people with normal vision, a statistically significant higher sensitivity (63.0 vs 47.5%) and lower specificity (89.6 vs 93.7%) in the detection of pathological lesions, using a phantom, was reported in the blind.
Conclusion. Our study confirms that the detection of pathological breast lesions by the blind is highly effective, however, the ability to exclude such lesions was not of clinical significance.
Abstract
Introduction. Methodological assumptions as well as the initial stage of the execution of the project entitled “Breast-POL” — the use of sensory perception of blind and visually impaired masseurs for the purpose of breast cancer screening by palpation were presented.
Materials and methods. A list of incentives to conduct this methodologically adequate study includes: 1. Encouraging and widely disseminated German reports (these reports, however, were of high generality and they did not provide the adequate methodology); 2. Theoretical data on the hypercompensation of other senses than vision in the blind; 3. Preliminary information on the involvement of the blind in breast cancer screening by palpation in developing countries.
Results. Compared to people with normal vision, a statistically significant higher sensitivity (63.0 vs 47.5%) and lower specificity (89.6 vs 93.7%) in the detection of pathological lesions, using a phantom, was reported in the blind.
Conclusion. Our study confirms that the detection of pathological breast lesions by the blind is highly effective, however, the ability to exclude such lesions was not of clinical significance.
Keywords
breast cancer, screening, prevention, palpation, blind people
About this articleTitle
The use of sensory perception of blind and visually impaired masseurs for the purpose of early-stage breast cancer screening by palpation (the “Breast-POL” project)
Journal
Nowotwory. Journal of Oncology
Issue
Article type
Research paper (original)
Pages
457-462
Published online
2017-06-12
Page views
991
Article views/downloads
1197
DOI
Bibliographic record
Nowotwory. Journal of Oncology 2016;66(6):457-462.
Keywords
breast cancer
screening
prevention
palpation
blind people
Authors
Lidia Rakow
Zbigniew Lewandowski
Ewa Romejko-Wolniewicz
Małgorzata Pękala
Józef Piotr Knap