Assessment of the national breast cancer screening program outcomes in the Skhirat-Temara prefecture from 2020 to 2024

Breast cancer tops the list of cancer fatalities globally amongst women. It is fast growing in Morocco, where it accounts for 39% of female cancers. Screening programs were implemented in 2010, with breast examination by a healthcare provider as its base, under the National Cancer Prevention and Control Plan (NCPCP). Yet, no study ever checked the performance of its program in the prefecture of Skhirat-Temara, despite this being a pilot area for the program. It is in this context that a study on the evaluation of the performance indicators of this program over the years 2020 to 2024 has been initiated. A data on screening and diagnostic activities under the NBCSP were extract from health information system, which focuses on maternal and child health. The quantitative data considered participation, referral, and detection rates and diagnostic activities. Statistical testing was conducted with Excel 2018. Between 2020 and 2024, 151,229 women were screened for breast cancer in various health centers in the Skhirat-Temara prefecture as part of the PNDPCSC program. Referral rates averaged only 2.6% instead of the required levels ranging between 10 and 13%. In comparing detection rates amongst screened women, breast cancer detection was falling from 1.81 per 1,000 women screened in 2021 to 0.86 per 1,000 women screened in 2024. However, wide disparities between the municipalities were recorded. The Skhirat-Temara screening program is below national targets with gradual improvement being observed. Targeted interventions need to be undertaken to increase coverage to strengthen following-up of referred cases and to better adapt targets to realities on the ground. A named follow-up system and the redefinition of the standards of performance could consequence moving forward for the effectiveness of the program.