The American College of Radiology (ACR) is taking aim at an article and editorial published March 15 in JAMA Internal Medicine on recommendations for mammography screening found on the websites of breast imaging centers. The ACR said the articles are "misleading."
The article analyzed recommendations for mammography screening made on the websites of breast imaging facilities in the U.S. The researchers asserted that websites were promoting screening for women in their 40s, recommendations that they claimed run counter to national guidelines.
The article was accompanied by an editorial by JAMA Internal Medicine Editor in Chief Dr. Rita Redberg and colleagues that suggested that breast imaging centers promoted earlier screening for financial reasons.
In its response, the ACR noted that national medical societies that are experts in breast cancer diagnosis and care, including the ACR and the Society of Breast Imaging (SBI), recommend that women start getting annual mammograms at age 40. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends women start mammograms at age 40 and get tested every one to two years.
Additionally, the ACR's called the assertion that financial incentives were driving screening recommendations at breast imaging centers "outrageous and insulting" and not backed by any evidence.
