The push behind mammogram screenings springs from the idea that the early detection of breast cancer can save more lives, given that doctors can then treat the cancer in its initial stages. But a new study released by the British Medical Journal argues otherwise, adding to a growing stock of evidence that shows that mammograms may not actually save as many lives as we’d hope.
The 25-year study saw 89,835 women in Canada, now aged 40 to 59, who were broken into two groups. One group received only physical exams during the study’s course, while the other group received mammograms plus a physical breast exam as well.
In the end, the results broke down the widely held belief that early breast cancer detection causes more lives to be saved. There was no reduction in breast cancer mortality among the study subjects. In fact, the study showed that mammograms simply prolonged the perceived survival time of a breast cancer victim, but they didn’t actually cut down on the number of deaths.
This isn’t the first time a study has concluded that mammograms don’t reduce the mortality rate from breast cancer. A 2012 study in the New England Journal of Medicine also yielded the same results.
The American College of Radiology and the Society of Breast Imaging have argued that the study is “misleading,” and that it shouldn’t be used to determine policies as it could put many women at an increased risk of “dying unnecessarily” from the disease.