A review published in Jan 2016 in Annals of Internal Medicine finds that false positive results from annual and biannual breast cancer screenings are common and the false positives lead to additional harmful imaging and biopsies.
Some studies show annual mammography screening results in higher rates of false positives than biennial screening, 61% vs. 42% and rates of false-positive results from biopsy are 7% among those receiving annual screening and 5% among those receiving biennial breast cancer screening.
Other breast cancer studies indicate that the cumulative 10-year rates of false-positive mammography results were 49% for all screened women and 56% for women aged 40 to 49 years. The false positive results from biopsies were 19% for all screened women. Younger women and those with dense breasts are more likely to receive false positive results from mammography screening and biopsies.
Mammography by itself can induce breast cancer and other malignancies. Evidence according to this review suggests that of 100,000 women who receive screening with digital mammography, 2 to 10 women depending on ages and screening intervals will die from cancer induced by radiation from the screening.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (The USPSTF) has updated its recommendation on breast cancer screening. Now the expert group says women aged 50 to 74 years should receive biennial mammography screening. Women who believe the potential benefits overweighs potential harms may choose to start biennial screening between the ages of 40 and 49 years. But the decision should be "an individual one".
The USPSTF acknowledges that it remains unknown whether or not women ages 75 years or older benefit from breast cancer screening. (David Liu)
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