Are women being conned about the benefits of breast cancer screening?
Here’s a little test. Breast cancer screening reduces deaths by 25 per cent. If we assume that 1,000 women dutifully turn up to all their screening appointments, how many lives will be saved? Remarkably, the answer is one. Not 250, or 100, or even 25 – the figures picked by a substantial proportion of gynaecologists who were asked this question. As a recent study showed, if 1,000 women began screening at the age of 50, and had a mammogram every year, only one would have her life saved through early detection and treatment of cancer by the time screening stops at the age of 70. Without screening, four women would have died from breast cancer. With it, three would have done so. But in the same group, between two and ten women would also be treated needlessly – possibly with surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. And between 100 and 500 would have a false alarm, suffer worry, and need further tests before getting the all-clear. About half would undergo an unnecessary biopsy. Here’s anoth
Here’s a little test. Breast cancer screening reduces deaths by 25 per cent. If we assume that 1,000 women dutifully turn up to all their screening appointments, how many lives will be saved? Remarkably, the answer is one. Not 250, or 100, or even 25 – the figures picked by a substantial proportion of gynaecologists who were asked this question. As a recent study showed, if 1,000 women began screening at the age of 50, and had a mammogram every year, only one would have her life saved through early detection and treatment of cancer by the time screening stops at the age of 70. Without screening, four women would have died from breast cancer. With it, three would have done so. But in the same group, between two and ten women would also be treated needlessly – possibly with surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. And between 100 and 500 would have a false alarm, suffer worry, and need further tests before getting the all-clear. About half would undergo an unnecessary biopsy. Here’s anoth
