At VBCF, we are big proponents of mammograms because they can help someone catch their breast cancer early. This can hopefully lead to less invasive and intense treatment and better outcomes.
However, in recent years there has been a back and forth in the research world as to whether more mammogram screenings actually save lives, or is it the fact that treatment has advanced in the past 30 years? And are we actually saving any additional lives with regular screenings that make it worth the financial and personal cost of potentially overscreening and overtreating some people?
A recent study out of Sweden sought to answer that question, and the result of this study of more than 500,000 patients was that there is a correlation between regular mammography screening and a decrease in advanced or fatal breast cancer. This definitely sounds like one in the “win” column for regular mammography.
A couple of things to point out about this study though. First, correlation does not equal causation. Just because two things are related doesn’t mean that one CAUSED the other, so there might be something else that the people who get screened regularly are doing to affect their breast cancer risk.
Another aspect of this study is that the population of Sweden is not as diverse as that of the United States or Virginia. For example, in Virginia, black women are more likely than white women to get their mammograms at least every two years, yet they still die in much greater numbers. So, it’s not just getting the mammogram that decreases the severity of breast cancer, other issues such as access to quality care and treatment are in play.
Another issue: the financial disclosures of the lead researcher show that he has received personal funding from GE, a maker of mammography and other medical equipment, and a separate mammography focused company, of which he is the president. This point isn’t necessarily a deal breaker as a lot of research is funded by companies/organizations that directly benefit from said research, because they have a clear, vested interest. But whenever you see a research study with results that benefits its funders, it’s simply good to be aware of the conflicts of interest that may exist.
So as VBCF continues to share through our educational efforts, while mammograms are not a perfect tool, they are one of the best, first ones we have in identifying breast cancer. In combination with talking to your health provider about your personal risk factors for breast cancer, making healthy lifestyle choices, and knowing your own normal for your body and chest, mammograms are another useful tool for continued breast health.
Image by Elías Alarcón from Pixabay.
2 Responses
I like this discussion. I had mammograms and found my own breast lump. Are women who get mammograms also performing self breast exams? Why is an economic disparity leading to higher rates of breast cancer? I have so many more questions. Patient A
It seems that the more we learn about breast cancer, the more questions we actually uncover. As far as breast self exams, as in the “check your breasts in a certain way at a certain time of the month” technique, they are no longer recommended because of a lack of scientific evidence that they save lives, so there isn’t really much research asking if people who get mammograms also do self breast exams. Now, it is a good idea to be familiar with your body so if you notice a difference you can mention it to your provider, but it’s hard to ask about that in a study. Anecdotally, I think it depends on the person whether they do any sort of self check. Some people are uncomfortable with their chests for a variety of reasons and may depend on a mammogram as their sole screening method. Some people aren’t aware that sometimes breast cancer can crop up in between mammograms, or that dense breast tissue can hide breast cancer in mammograms sometimes so they don’t think they need to check themselves because “the mammogram will catch everything”. As to economic disparity, that’s a major question. Is it the “Western diet” that leads to an increase in breast cancer diagnoses, or is it the more ready access to screening that catches more cancers, or both, or something else entirely? Thankfully, we are beginning to learn more about what we don’t know about breast cancer, which will hopefully lead us to improved treatments and more concrete prevention information.