Is the National Debate on Breast Cancer Screening Overblown?
December 10, 2009 |17:16 | Women Health Issues By : Team X
Is the debate on breast cancer screening overblown? This is a hot and controversial question that is now being answered in the affirmative.
There have been many headlines generated relating to the costs for mammograms. A number of groups have trumpeted their belief that to cut back on this type of screening will sacrifice women’s lives just to save a few dollars in health care costs.
However this does not seem to be the driving force behind the recent announcement that women should forego annual mammograms.
The reason that the US Preventive Services Task Force came out with their new mammogram screening guidelines is because it makes sense.
Cancers are now more understood than they were in the past. Indeed, research shows that many times abnormal collections of cells are corralled and eliminated by the body’s natural immune system.
This means that many microscopic abnormalities do not need immediate surgical intervention. In addition to this fact it does not make sense for every woman to have annual mammograms because the percentage of cancers that are being discovered are quite small, especially when you consider the risks of such regular radiation exposure.
Is the debate on breast cancer screening overblown? This depends largely on whom you are asking, but there does seem to be some convincing reasons why the new guidelines should be integrated into national health care policies. Women who have pressing reasons, such as personal or familial history of breast cancer, could still continue with this routine screening. For most healthy females there seems to be no overwhelming amount of facts to prove that this practice is necessary in the war against this disease.
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