A new study published online Monday in the Archives of Internal Medicine that reported screening mammography may not save as many lives as previously estimated belongs in the lay press, not a medical journal, according to the American College of Radiology (ACR).
In the study, authors Dr. H. Gilbert Welch, from the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, and colleague Brittney Frankel postulate that women are either being diagnosed early with no effect on their mortality, or are being "overdiagnosed" for cancers that represent no threat to their health. They also suggest that breast cancer survivors' stories should not be used for clinical decision-making on the frequency of mammography screening (Arch Intern Med, October 24, 2011).
The paper is a distraction from the enormous amount of scientific evidence that supports screening, the ACR said in a statement.
"No expert has argued in scientific support of mammography screening that, because someone claims their life was saved by screening, this, somehow, supports screening," the ACR said. "The serious support for screening comes from the data from randomized, controlled trials and large observational studies that clearly show that deaths from breast cancer are reduced by early detection."
