Oklahoma Lawmaker Plans To Introduce Legislation Improving Breast Cancer Screenings

Legislation aimed at better breast cancer screenings in Oklahoma will be introduced next legislative session.

A state lawmaker made that pledge to a Tulsa man, who lost his wife to the disease.

Representative Mike Ritze said he's exploring legislation regarding dense breast tissue.

Oklahoma could become the 25th state to have legislation requiring doctors to tell women getting a mammogram if they have dense breast tissue.

Joseph Jennings is fighting to change how breast cancer is screened after his wife, Kristen Bendele, died from the disease last year. Among his concerns are women with dense breast tissue.

7/15/2015 Related Story: Tulsa Widower Pushing To Lower Age For Mammogram Coverage

Mammograms don't always catch cancer for women with dense breasts; it’s easier to spot a tumor in fatty tissue, but can be difficult to see in dense tissue.

More Information On Mammogram Screenings

"It was like finding a snowball in a snowstorm," Jennings said.

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More than 40 percent of women have dense breasts, but doctors are not required to tell you.

Legislation introduced, but never voted on, in the Oklahoma House last February would require physicians to tell patients if they have dense breasts, saying, "Dense breast tissue can make it harder to evaluate the results of your mammogram and may also be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer."

Jennings is now meeting with Ritze, who has reserved legislation on the subject for the February session. Ritze told Jennings the bill would be named after Kristen.

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"I don't believe there was a word in our English dictionary that would describe it. That one, it goes straight through your soul," Jennings said.

Ritze, a physician, himself, is looking into the pros and cons of women with dense breasts also getting ultrasounds, which could better identify cancer.

The next legislative session starts February 1.

Almost 90,000 people have joined Jennings's fight to change breast cancer screenings in more ways than one.