Do I need a mamogram every year?
Its Time to Question the Value of Mammography New studies have cast doubt on whether these unpleasant procedures save lives. Mammography is big business these days. Countless advertisements and physicians are telling women to have mammograms. But the value of this procedure is far from clear. We all know mammograms have a high risk of false positive and false negative findings. The test procedure is unpleasant and radiation is potentially harmful. Mammography is claimed to lower the risk of dying from breast cancer. Proponents argue that mammography can detect breast tumors a year or so earlier than simple palpation. This early detection, so the argument goes, leads to earlier treatment and a lower risk of breast cancer mortality. Statistics, it is claimed, have validated this argument. Many statisticians, however, disagree. Statistics are not immune from biases, which include mechanical factors, (different measuring instruments in different subjects), study methodology, conscious or u
