Another particularly long term study was reported in March in the Journal Radiology and recounted at http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/testing/new_research/20120223.jsp.
In 18 years of followup, on 1977 women aged 40-49 years, Dr. Judith Malmgren and her colleagues from Swedish Cancer Institute in Seattle, Washington compared mammographically detected breast cancers to those detected by patient or physician. They found that the mammogram-detected cancers were smaller, required less aggressive treatment and had better survival.
The mean size of the patient or doctor detected cancers was 2.98 cm and the size of the mammographically detected tumors only 1.8 cm.
Mammographic cancers were more likely to have lumpectomy by 67% to 48%. Chemotherapy was also less likely in the mammographically detected cancers.
The survival was better for the mammographically detected cancers. In the 8.8 year followup, only 4% died in the mammogram group and 11% in the self or physician detected group.
Overall the estimated disease-specific 5 year survival for the mammographically detected cancers was 98%, compared to only 93% for the patient or doctor detected cancers.
Mammograms in women 40-49 years do save lives!
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