Regular Screening Mammograms Save Lives
Swedish women who got screening mammograms on a regular schedule cut their risk of dying from breast cancer by 66% compared to women who didn’t get mammograms, according to a study.
The research was presented on Nov. 30, 2023, at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
Read the abstract of “Beneficial Effect of Repeated Participation in Breast Cancer Screening on Survival.” (Scroll down to the fourth abstract.)
Why do the study?
Many women are confused about how often they should be getting mammograms, and when they should start, in part because of an ongoing debate around recommendations.
A number of organizations have breast cancer screening recommendations for women at average risk of breast cancer. But all the recommendations are a little different. Some organizations recommend starting screening mammograms at age 50, and others recommend starting at age 40. At the same time, some organizations recommend having a mammogram each year, and others recommend having a mammogram every other year. So many women aren’t sure when they should start having screening mammograms or how often to have them.
In hopes of cutting through the confusion and clarifying mammogram recommendations, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) released guidelines for breast cancer screening and diagnosis in 2022 that say everyone who has breasts age 40 and older at average risk of breast cancer should have an annual mammogram. The NCCN is an alliance of 33 leading cancer centers and its guidelines are the standard of care for oncologists in the United States.
This study wanted to see if having regularly scheduled mammograms had an effect on breast cancer survival.
About the study
In Sweden, all women aged 40 to 74 who are registered as Swedish residents are offered a free mammogram every two years.
The researchers used the Swedish Cause of Death Register to look at the screening mammogram history of 37,079 women who were diagnosed with breast cancer between 1992 and 2016. Among these women, 4,564 died from breast cancer.
Women who were older would have received more mammogram invitations than women who were younger. Depending on how many mammogram invitations they received:
58% to 73% of the women had all their scheduled screening mammograms
73% to 96% of the women had at least one screening mammogram
Among women who had all their scheduled screening mammograms, survival rates ranged from 82.7% to 86.9%.
Among women who had no screening mammograms, survival rates ranged from 59.1% to 77.6%.
Compared to women who had no screening mammograms, women who had all their scheduled mammograms had a 66% lower risk of dying from breast cancer.
“Women who attended all five previous mammography examinations prior to a diagnosis of breast cancer were nearly three times less likely to die from breast cancer compared with women who had not attended any examinations, and each additional examination attended among the five previous examinations conferred an additive protective effect against dying from breast cancer,” study author Robert A. Smith, PhD, senior vice president and director of the American Cancer Society Center for Cancer Screening, said in a statement.
What this means for you
At Breastcancer.org, we believe your best chance for finding breast cancer early requires using all the current screening tools:
regular high-quality mammography
breast physical exams by a health professional
It’s also important to have a breast cancer risk assessment by age 25. A risk assessment is done by your doctor and considers your health information related to breast cancer, including:
family history of breast or other related cancers (ovarian, melanoma)
any test results for gene mutations linked to a higher-than-average breast cancer risk
results of past breast biopsies, even if they were benign
personal history of radiation treatment to the face, chest, or both before age 30
breast density
weight
level of physical activity
any use of post-menopausal combined hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
alcohol consumption, if you regularly drink more than three alcoholic beverages a week
the amount of processed food and trans fats you eat
your smoking history
whether or not you have carried a pregnancy to term or have breastfed
Together, you and your doctor can decide when you should start getting mammograms and how often you should have them, based on your personal risk.
If you determine you have a higher-than-average risk of developing breast cancer, talk to your doctor about whether you need supplemental screening with MRI or ultrasound.
Once you start, make sure you follow your recommended screening plan. If you’re concerned about cost, ask your doctor’s office about low-cost or free screening programs in your area. Many mammogram facilities have financial assistance programs that can help you.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) coordinates the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. This program provides screening services, including breast physical exams and mammograms, to low-income, uninsured women throughout the United States and in several U.S. territories. Contact information for local programs is available on the CDC website or by calling 1–800–CDC–INFO (1–800–232–4636).
Information about free or low-cost mammography screening programs is also available from National Cancer Institute (NCI) Cancer Information Service at 1–800–4–CANCER (1–800–422–6237).
— Last updated on February 8, 2024 at 10:25 PM