title: Will screening for breast cancer reduce mortality? Evidence from the first year of screening in Avon.
abstract: In the first year of screening in Avon, 93 malignant lesions were detected of which one-half were impalpable. Of the impalpable lesions, one-half were in situ or showed areas of microinvasion only. One-fifth of the malignant lesions were invasive tumours of special histological type which are known to carry a good prognosis even when not detected by screening. One-quarter of the lesions had clinical or pathological features which would be expected to confer a poor prognosis. Only 16 invasive ductal carcinomas measuring 1 cm or less in diameter were detected--a small proportion of the total number of malignant lesions. Although these early figures suggest that the effect of screening on mortality from breast cancer may be small, continued high-quality screening and careful detailed analysis are essential to determine the effect of screening on the mortality from breast cancer and the effect on the population as a whole.
authors.affiliation: Regional Breast Screening Pathology Unit, Southmead Hospital, Bristol.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nicholson
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Webb
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Coghlan
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Farndon
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Armstrong
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Davies
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002278:Carcinoma in Situ / Q000517:prevention & control; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009313:National Health Programs; D011379:Prognosis