A Journal of Clinical Oncology study of 1,601 BRCA1/2 carriers found those ever exposed to chest x-rays were 54 percent more likely to develop breast cancer, with the increase near 100 percent for exposure before 40. The study measured chest x-rays, not mammography itself.
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Healthcare
More breast cancer screenings may not render more benefits - study
A Finnish study followed women screened from age 40 and found no significant difference in breast cancer incidence or death between annual and every-three-years mammography. Incidence was 12 percent lower and mortality 20 percent higher with annual screening.
Drug
False positive mammograms lead to anxiety, lower quality of life
Among 385 Dutch women with abnormal mammograms, the 233 with false positives reported more anxiety and lower quality of life than the 152 diagnosed with breast cancer, with effects lasting at least a year. Lead author Lideke van der Steeg says anxiety-prone women fared worst.
Drug
Women at risk of breast cancer fare better with early mammography
An 18-year review presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium found mammography caught 31 percent of stage 0 breast cancers against 2.5 percent found by hand, suggesting women in their 30s with known risk may gain from screening before the usual age of 40.
Drug
Pink News: Mammogram Screening Works for Women Ages 40-49
A Swedish study in Cancer compared women aged 40 to 49 invited to mammography screening with those who were not, between 1986 and 2005, and found fewer breast cancer deaths among those screened. An editor's note calls screening in this age group a contested question among experts.
Drug
Mammograms not effective as thought - new study
A Norwegian study following 40,075 women from 1996 through 2005 attributes only about a 10 percent reduction in breast cancer deaths to screening, or 2.4 fewer deaths per 100,000 person-years. Danish work put the benefit lower still, and the findings ran in NEJM.
Drug
Despite Recent Arguments, Breast Cancer Screening Saves Lives
Two studies by Stephen Duffy in the Journal of Medical Screening estimate that for every 28 breast cancers diagnosed through screening, two to 2.5 lives are saved and one case is over-diagnosed. A mammogram delivers about 0.7 mSv, roughly three months of background radiation.
Drug
Understand mammogram screening
Brodersen and colleagues argue women should hear mammography's benefits and harms in absolute numbers: screening 2,000 women for 10 years prolongs one life, while 10 are overdiagnosed and treated needlessly and more than 200 endure months of distress from false positives.
Drug
Breast Cancer News: Mammogram Screening Doesn't Cut Mortality Risk
A BMJ study compared Danish areas that introduced mammography screening with those that did not, over the decade before and after. Among women aged 55 to 74, breast cancer mortality fell 1 percent a year in the screened areas against 2 percent in the unscreened ones.
Drug
Breast Cancer News: Mammogram Screening Doesn’t Reduce Mortality Risk
A BMJ study comparing Danish regions before and after screening began found breast cancer mortality among women aged 55 to 74 fell 1 percent a year in screened areas versus 2 percent in unscreened ones, suggesting mammography did not cut deaths.
Drug
Avoid Routine Mammograms if You are Under 50
The US Preventive Services Task Force dropped routine mammograms for women in their 40s, telling them to weigh the risks and benefits with a doctor first. Dr. Mercola backs the change; the Obama administration said government insurance would keep covering screening from age 40.
Drug
Mammogram radiation raises breast cancer risk in some women
An analysis of six studies found high-risk women exposed to mammography radiation before age 20, or exposed five or more times, had 2.5 times the breast cancer risk, and 1.5 times the average risk compared with high-risk women not exposed to mammogram radiation.
Drug
Mammogram screening: What you need to know (2)
Drawing on a 2002 Chicago Tribune report, and warning it cites no references, the piece lists mammography's downsides: Danish reviews questioning the early 30 percent mortality benefit, overdiagnosis of tumours that never turn dangerous, and no way to tell indolent cancers from aggressive ones.
Healthcare
Mammogram screening: What you need to know
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now recommends mammograms every two years for women aged 50 to 74 rather than yearly from 40, and advises against teaching breast self-examination. A companion review found biennial screening delivers most of the benefit with half the false positives.
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