Quebec health minister orders breast cancer retests

Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc wants to begin retesting some breast cancer patients as soon as possible to ensure they're getting the correct treatment.

He said Tuesday he will adopt all of the Quebec College of Physicians' recommendations to address problems at provincial pathology labs, laid out in a report last week that suggested up to 30 per cent of tests done on breast cancer patients may have produced faulty results.

The results of these tests are used to determine the course of treatment for breast cancer patients.

After initially questioning the report, and suggesting it had been blown out of proportion, Bolduc is now essentially accepting the results.

Effective immediately, he said, all provincial labs will be required to have external audits of their tests.

Some labs are already doing that.

Bolduc also accepts that hundreds of patients may have to be retested to be sure they're getting the right treatment.

"It's something we'll have to do speak with experts and laboratories but we want that done as soon as possible," he said.

Bolduc says an expert committee will report back by the weekend with a plan, but it will likely be weeks before patients might start being retested.

Some of those patients have lost faith in Bolduc's handling of this issue.

Karen Williams is on tamoxifen after having a mastectomy last year.

"He's not the one treating me," Williams said."I'm confident that the surgical oncologist, the biomedical oncologist they're giving me the best [treatment].I'm not really paying attention to what the government's saying."

Elise Zylinksa, a Montrealer, said she's very worried about her current treatment plan for breast cancer.

Zylinksa is taking tamoxifen after undergoing a double mastectomy last year, but wonders if she is risking her health by taking a drug she may not need.

"First of all, [tamoxifen] pushes you right into menopause," she told CBC News. "The biggest complaint most women have is hot flashes. There's also a risk of having cervical cancer."

Bolduc said his committee will also make recommendations for province-wide quality assurance standards for pathology labs.

He said that will bring Quebec in line with provinces such as Ontario and Saskatchewan.