Campaign for Honest Evidence-Based Health Information

The goal of breast cancer screening is to prevent women from dying of breast cancer, and for thirty years women have been told by the mainstream breast cancer movement, corporate marketers and medical providers that regular... [ view full abstract ]

The goal of breast cancer screening is to prevent women from dying of breast cancer, and for thirty years women have been told by the mainstream breast cancer movement, corporate marketers and medical providers that regular mammograms will save their lives and early detection is their best protection. Current science shows that screening mammograms do not reduce the number of women who die from breast cancer and comes with significant harms including false positives, overdiagnosis and overtreatment.

Objectives: Provide important evidence based information for women at “average risk” about the harms and benefits of routine breast cancer screening while holding national breast cancer and public health organizations and charities accountable for pushing a scientifically invalid message about mammography. The author will describe the importance of creating and disseminating an unbiased patient-centered perspective on the evidence about mammography.

Methods & Results: The author reviewed all literature on routine screening mammography over the last thirty years. Information was analyzed and synthesized into the development of an accessible and visually engaging brochure, Should I Have A Mammogram: Understanding the Harms and Benefits of Routine Breast Cancer Screening, designed to help women evaluate their health decisions.

Conclusions: Women have the right to unbiased information, free from conflict of interest and without the heavy thumb of vested interests tipping the balance, in order to make decision that are right for them based on their own culture and values. Moving forward, we need 1) to shift away from early detection and focus on preventing breast cancer from developing in the first place, 2) to continue to provide balanced information so women can make informed choices and last, 3) clear evidence-based guidelines for all communities- including underrepresenting communities.