Healthy Breasts For Every Woman

In my February newsletter I reported about the concerns that mammograms were leading to unnecessary surgery in women who were found to have ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and that in many of these cases, the women would not have gone on to develop breast cancer.

Now there is a study showing that more lives are saved than cases overdiagnosed.  The study was undertaken by experts from the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine at Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry and appears in the Journal of Medical Screening.  It focused on data from 80,000 women from the age of 50 and looked at data from Sweden and England before and after the introduction of screening.

The research estimated that 5.7 breast cancer deaths were prevented for every 1,000 women screened over a 20-year period in England.

At the same time, 2.3 women per 1,000 were told they had a lump but it was not clear if it was an aggressive form of cancer that needed to be treated.

Put another way, for every 28 cases diagnosed, 2.5 lives were saved and one case was over-diagnosed.

To read more go to http://www.nhs.uk/news/2010/03March/Pages/Breast-cancer-screening.aspx

It is confusing for women when they hear conflicting stories.  And these studies do not consider the safety of mammograms themselves.

As part of my campaign, Healthy Breasts For Every Woman, I inform women about Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging as it can detect abnormalities in the breast about eight years earlier than a mammogram and covers the whole chest area, including the armpits, not just the part of the breast which can be put in the clamp.  It is also useful for monitoring any changes in the breast.  It is pain-free and non-invasive.  It is not currently available on the NHS but the cost is certainly not prohibitive.  Go to www.meditherm.com to find your local practitioner.

Nikki Mattei

I have questioned the safety of mammograms in the past and always make women aware of digital infrared thermal imaging as a safe screening method.

Independent charity, Canceractive, has examined the safety of mammograms for women with a higher risk of breast cancer due to genetic factors in its January 2010 Cancerwatch.  Research presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America warns that annual mammograms can be dangerous and actually cause more cancers in this at risk group, especially amongst the under-40’s.  These women have known mutations in BRAC1 or BRAC2 genes (mutations that put women at a much higher risk for developing breast cancer).

To read the full article and find out about the study done in Europe with 1600 high-risk women, click here.

Nikki Mattei