Women who receive a false-positive result after a mammogram may be less likely to undergo subsequent screening for breast cancer, a recent study suggests.
- Early detection of breast cancer can improve the chances of cure.
- However, American studies have observed that women who have had false positive results after a mammogram are less likely to undergo subsequent screening.
- Scientists found that only 61% of women had another mammogram after a false-positive result that required further testing.
From the age of 50, and then every two years, women generally receive an invitation from their primary health insurance fund (CPAM) to benefit from breast cancer screening. The goal is to detect a potential abnormality or cancer early before symptoms appear. As explained National Cancer Institutethis early detection allows 99 out of 100 women to be alive five years after diagnosis.
Mammography: a drop in subsequent screenings in the event of a false positive
A recent study conducted by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, located in California (United States), has however alerted to a major problem concerning breast cancer screening by mammography. In the event of abnormal results, imaging tests and a biopsy are generally carried out to confirm the initial conclusions. According to American researchers, many results would in reality be “false positives”, which would not lead to a diagnosis of cancer.
The agency then found that women who received a false-positive result requiring additional imaging or biopsy were less likely to return for screening afterwards. “This finding raises concerns about the potential unintended consequences of false-positive results, where women could avoid screening mammograms in the future.”said Diana Miglioretti, lead author of the work, a cancer center researcher and chief of the division of biostatistics at UC Davis.
The importance of breast cancer screening
In this research, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, Data from screening mammograms carried out between 2005 and 2007 on more than one million patients aged 40 to 73 were analyzed.
The study results found that 77% of women who had a negative mammogram result returned for further screening. Unfortunately, this figure dropped by 61% and 67% respectively if the patient had a false positive result and had to have another mammogram within six months, or if she had to have a biopsy.
This rate was even more marked in the case of false positive results after two consecutive mammograms: only 56% of patients returned for a mammogram during the next screening.
In a press releasethe researchers then insisted on the importance of regular screening to treat potential breast cancer as quickly as possible. “It is important to understand that most women who are called back for additional imaging because of a screening mammogram result do not have breast cancer… They should try not to be alarmed if they are called back for additional testing. This is a normal and routine part of the screening process.”underlined Diana Miglioretti.