Mammography Works:
Recommendations in Light of Controversial Report

Last month the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued controversial mammography recommendations that seemed to contradict previous notions. USPSTF's November 16 announcement, which two officials have since said was partly misread, suggested these changes to the recommendations:

• Women between 40 and 49 no longer be screened for breast cancer unless they had an increased risk of the disease
  
• Women between 50 and 74 get screened every other year instead of every year
  
• Women over age 74 not be screened at all

What to make of this message? Mammography may not be a perfect tool, but it does make a difference. According to the American College of Radiology (ACR), there are several points that should be considered:

• Mammography has reduced the breast cancer death rate in the U.S. by 30 percent since 1990
  
• One invasive cancer is found for every 556 mammograms performed in women in their 40s
  
• Mammography only every other year in women 50 to 74 would miss 19 to 33 percent of cancers that could be detected by annual screenings
  
• Starting at age 50 would sacrifice 33 years of life per 1,000 women screened that could have been saved if screening had begun at age 40
  
• 85 percent of abnormal mammograms require only additional images to clarify whether cancer is present. Only 2 percent of women who get screening mammograms require a biopsy

Kathleen Sebelius, Health and Human Services secretary, said it best in a statement. "My message to women is simple. Mammograms have always been an important life-saving tool in the fight against breast cancer, and they still are today. Keep doing what you have been doing for years - talk to your doctor about your individual history, ask questions, and make the decision that is right for you."

For questions regarding mammography, contact the OLBH Women's Center at (606) 836-PINK(7465).