Mammography leads to better breast cancer prognosis | Cancer Kick

In women ages 40 to 49, breast cancers detected by mammography have a better prognosis, according to a study.

The patients ?were easier to treat and had less recurring disease and mortality because their cancer was found at an earlier stage,? Judith A. Malmgren, PhD, of HealthStat Consulting, Inc., said in a news release.

Malmgren and a team of researchers reviewed breast cancer patient data from a dedicated registry at the community cancer center of the Swedish Cancer Institute in Seattle. The researchers analyzed data on 1,977 breast cancer patients ages 40 to 49 who were treated between 1990 and 2008. The researchers looked at method of diagnosis (detected by mammography, patient or physician), stage at diagnosis (0-IV, confirmed by biopsy), treatment and annual follow-up information, including recurrence of disease.

?Our goal was to assess the differences between mammography and non-mammography detected breast cancer to determine whether earlier detection confers a treatment and morbidity advantage because the disease is found at an earlier stage,? Malmgren said.

The data analysis revealed a significant increase in the percentage of mammography-detected breast cancer over the 18-year period, from 28% in 1990 to 58% in 2008. Over the same period, patient- and physician-detected breast cancer declined from 73% of all cases in 1990 to 42% in 2008.

?The shift toward more mammography-detected breast cancer cases was accompanied by a shift toward diagnosis at an earlier stage of disease that required less treatment,? Malmgren said.

Over the 18-year period, the number of breast cancers diagnosed at Stage 0 increased by 66%, while the number of Stage III breast cancers decreased by 66%. The majority of Stage 0 cancer cases were ductal carcinoma in situ, a non-invasive cancer that is confined to a milk duct. The treatment of DCIS remains controversial, the researchers noted, because not all experts agree that it is potentially life threatening.

Malmgren said another key finding of the study was the extent of treatment patients received. Compared with women whose cancer was self-detected or discovered by a physician, patients whose cancer was detected using mammography were more likely to have breast-conserving treatment and less likely to have chemotherapy. Specifically, they were more likely to undergo lumpectomy (67% vs. 48%), less likely to undergo modified radical mastectomy (25% vs. 47%) and less likely to die of breast cancer (4% vs. 11%).

The American Cancer Society and other medical organizations say women should begin receiving annual mammograms to screen for breast cancer at age 40. In 2009, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force issued guidelines that eliminated the longstanding recommendation for routine mammography screening for women ages 40 to 49, stating that the benefits of screening were potentially outweighed by the harms of screening, such as false-positive results.

The study appears in the March issue of Radiology. To read a summary and access the study via subscription or purchase, visit http://bit.ly/xxRUHY.

Article source: http://news.nurse.com/article/20120222/NATIONAL02/102270028/-1/frontpage

Source: http://cancerkick.com/2012/02/23/mammography-leads-to-better-breast-cancer-prognosis/

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