Breast Cancer Screening: A large study published recently has raised questions on the decades-old thinking regarding breast cancer screening. Until now, it was generally believed that all women after the age of 40 should have a mammogram every year, whether their risk of breast cancer was high or low. But according to new research, screening based on each woman’s individual risk may be smarter, safer and more effective.
About 46,000 women from America were included in this large trial conducted by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). The study compared traditional annual mammograms with “risk-based screening,” which took into account genetic, biological and lifestyle factors. This research has been published in the prestigious medical journal Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Breast cancer is easy to detect
The study results showed that risk-based screening was as effective in detecting advanced stage breast cancer as annual mammogram screening, but with fewer times the need for screening. The most important thing was that this method did not show any increase in the cases of higher-stage cancer. This means that despite less testing, there was no compromise on the safety of the patients.
Dr. Laura J., director of the UCSF Breast Care Center and lead researcher of the study. Esserman said these results highlight the need for changes in current clinical guidelines and practice for breast cancer screening. According to him, “A personalized approach starts with risk assessment, which should include genetic, biological and lifestyle factors. This will ultimately lead to effective prevention strategies.”
Know what the statistics say
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. According to the data of the year 2022, about 2.3 million new cases were reported in a year across the world, while about 6.7 lakh women died from this disease. Despite this, screening guidelines have long been based on the assumption that all women have approximately the same risk, even though scientific evidence suggests that risk can vary significantly from woman to woman.
Study co-author Dr. Jeffrey A., professor of medicine at UCSF. According to Tice, focusing resources on high-risk women rather than low-risk women is a more efficient way to screen and prevent breast cancer.
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shocking revelation
Another shocking fact that came to light was that about 30 percent of the women included in the study were found to have genetic variants that increase the risk of breast cancer, but they had made no mention of this disease in their family history. This makes it clear that it is not enough to decide on screening only on the basis of age or family history.
Overall, this study is considered an important step towards making breast cancer screening more personalized, scientific and resource-efficient.
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