With Mammography overdiagnosis is real

Years ago I wrote for the New York Times, "Why I Never Got a Mammogram," where I looked at mortality data for women who got mammograms versus those who didn't (spoiler alert--they are exceedingly similar).

Now the New England Journal says the overdiagnosis of breast cancer via mammography is larger than generally recognized. Definitely something to consider.

"I think the main message [of the study] is that screening has both benefits and harms. There is no single 'right answer' ― values matter. Screening is a choice, not a public health imperative," Dr Welch told Medscape Medical News.

Overdiagnosis is considered one of the harms of screening, but it is not easily evaluated using clinical trial data because of the need for long-term patient follow-up, the study authors say.

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