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Life mobileAmerican Cancer Society reaffirms recommendation for mammograms
Newspaper reports group working on a change in emphasis.
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The American Cancer Society has hastened to respond to a front-page story in the New York Times suggesting the organization is rethinking its emphasis on early screening for breast and prostate cancers.
“Cancer Group Has Concerns on Screenings” appeared on Wednesday, Oct. 21, and states that the benefits of such screenings may, in fact, have been overstated.
According to the Times, “It (The ACS) is quietly working on a message, to put on its Web site early next year, to emphasize that screening for breast and prostate cancer and certain other cancers can come with a real risk of over-treating many small cancers while missing cancers that are deadly.”
In response to the article, ACS chief medical officer Otis W Brawlet issued a statement reaffirming its recommendation that women age 40 and over should receive annual mammography.
“Mammography is effective — mammograms work and women should continue to get them,” he said. “The bottom line is that mammography has helped avert deaths from breast cancer, and we can make more progress against the disease if more women age 40 and older get an annual mammogram. Seven clinical trials tell us that screening with mammography and clinical breast exam do reduce risk of breast cancer death. This test is beneficial in that it saves lives, but it is not perfect. It can miss cancers that need treatment, and in some cases finds disease that does not need treatment. Understanding these limitations will help researchers develop better screening tests.”
Local breast cancer professionals contacted Wednesday were unprepared to comment.
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Join the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk on Saturday, Oct. 15 at Fifth Third Field. > Find out how to participate
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