For Immediate Release:
Contact: Michael J. Bernstein (703) 648-8910
Carolyn Loss (703) 648-8928
ACR Continues Support of Mammography Screening For Women 40-49, Says NIH Panel Misread Data
The American College of Radiology (ACR) today reaffirmed its strong support for mammography screening for women in their 40s and said that a National Institutes of Heath Panel failed to recognize and incorporate into its report important new follow-up data from clinical trials that confirms the benefits of this test.
The College also said that the panel's decision not to recommend screening mammography for women 40-49 was regrettable and not in the best interest of American women in this age group.
Two independent studies from Sweden, one from Gothenburg the other from Malmo reported at the meeting a statistically significant decrease in the breast cancer death rate of 44% and 36% respectively for women who began screening in their 40's.
The NIH Consensus Panel has stated that after considering information from numerous studies it did not find sufficient evidence to warrant screening mammography for women aged 40-49.
ACR, on the other hand, pointed out that not only did randomized trials around the world show a statistically significant benefit, but numerous other studies involving hundreds of thousands of women have shown that with mammographic screening the breast cancer death rate can be reduced substantially.
For the past two years, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has reported that the mortality rate from breast cancer has dropped for all age groups--including those 40-49. This is the first time in 40 years there has been a decline and NCI has concluded that this decrease is due, in part, to breast cancer detection with screening mammography. It is ironic that the NCI decision came so soon after such recent good news concerning the fight against breast cancer in the United States and around the world.
Not only is the evidence compelling that this age group should be screened, but a growing number of studies clearly indicate the screening interval for women 40-49 should be shortened from the present recommendation of every 1-2 years to every year. Since NCI has clearly indicated it will not be involved with guidelines, in the very near future, numerous national health care groups plan to meet to address the issue of yearly mammography screening in this age group and to give more guidance to women in their 40's.
Since NCI withdrew its support for screening women in their 40s more than three years ago, ACR and more than 20 other national medical organizations and women's groups have continued to support screening this age group. More than 30,000 women in the United States aged 40-49 are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and to discourage women in their 40s from having life-saving mammography is a tragic mistake.
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