Government’s BreastScreen funding contradicts Review, leaving a major reform gap

The federal government has released the long-awaited BreastScreen Australia Review report more than 1,000 days after it was first commissioned. But the central issue emerging from the announcement is the widening gap between the scale of reform recommended and the funding committed to deliver it.

While the review outlines a pathway towards a more modern, equitable and personalised breast cancer screening system, government modelling indicates that implementing the recommendations could cost up to $2 billion over the next decade. The announcement, however, commits just $1.3 million to begin the reform process.

Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) Director of Policy, Advocacy & Support Services Vicki Durston said the review validates longstanding concerns, but warned that the initial investment falls far short of what is required.

“The $1.3 million may commence some important policy work, but it is not a national implementation reform package. It will not be addressing the much-needed issues – building the workforce, increasing service capacity or delivering new technology across Australia,” she stated.

The review found participation in BreastScreen Australia has stagnated at 51.7%, remaining well below the national target of 70%. The participation gap is even more pronounced among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and those living in remote and socioeconomically disadvantaged communities.

The findings arrive amid the latest insights from the Hologic Global Women’s Health Index, alongside emerging Australian research into risk-based breast cancer screening, highlighting the need for a broader rethink of how women access preventive healthcare.

National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) CEO Dr Cleola Anderiesz and Hologic ANZ General Manager Kensi Naicker told Health Industry Hub that the data points not only to ongoing barriers to cancer screening participation but also to deeper structural inequities influencing women’s health outcomes.

The proposed transformation of BreastScreen Australia includes expanding access to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for women at high risk, introducing ultrasound where breast density reduces the effectiveness of mammography, and adopting artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled reading tools to support radiologists.

Researchers at the University of Melbourne have already trialled BRAIx, an AI tool trained using BreastScreen Australia data that is designed to assist radiologists in interpreting breast imaging. Further research is also underway through the NBCF-funded MyScreen Trial, which is examining whether Australia’s breast screening approach should transition from a primarily age-based model towards personalised risk assessment.

The financial implications of the BreastScreen Australia reform have been outlined through government-commissioned modelling. The estimates include $94 million over 10 years to introduce modern 3D mammography, $764 million to establish a risk-based screening model, and up to $2 billion for a broader reform package incorporating supplementary imaging for women with dense breasts. This comes against the backdrop of an existing BreastScreen Australia program that already costs governments almost $270 million annually to operate in its current form.

BCNA welcomed the government’s commitment to developing a national annual screening policy, a National Participation Strategy and a strengthened Quality and Safety Framework, describing these measures as important first steps. However, the organisation warned that without a funded implementation pathway, Australia risks falling short of international commitments, including the 025 United Nations Political Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases, to improve breast cancer prevention and equity.

“Women deserve a clear, funded implementation pathway that reflects the scale and urgency of the reform required,” Durston emphasised.

BCNA is calling on the government to publish a fully costed 10-year implementation plan with clear delivery timelines and named accountability measures. It is also urging confirmation that the 70% participation target remains the national goal, supported by interim milestones and a funded strategy to achieve it.

Krysty Sullivan, a BCNA advocate, highlighted the personal impact of delays in reform, drawing on her own experience with breast cancer detection.

“For women like me, whose cancer was missed by routine 2D screening, the implementation timeframes in this framework are painfully slow,” she said.

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