Female patients’ perception of pain caused by mammography in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association of different factors in the mammography related pain perception of women who attended their screening and diagnostic mammography appointments and whether the pain perceived was equal to the pain experienced. METHODS: This prospective study was conducted at the Breast Unit of King Abdulaziz University (KAU) Hospital, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), in the period between April and May 2015. A structured questionnaire with close-ended questions was given to a sample of 100 women before and after their mammogram, asking about their pain perception and whether it had changed. RESULTS: The factors that affected anticipated mammography pain for the surveyed women were past mammography experiences, previous breast procedures, and the knowledge that was gathered beforehand about mammography. After the mammography, the women who thought the procedure was going to be painful experienced what they expected. The majority of the women who did not expect the mammography to be painful experienced pain during their mammogram. Most of the women who did not know whether it would be painful or not experienced the mammography as painful. CONCLUSION: Pain expectation can be approached in various ways to make the mammography experience much more tolerable for women, encouraging them to attend and return for their scans.