[Mammographic screening in the county of Copenhagen. Clinical consequences of the first three screening rounds].
BACKGROUND
Service mammography has been offered biennially to women aged 50-69 years in the municipality of Copenhagen since 1991. The results were compared to breast cancer cases before initiation of screening. The comparison concerns prognostic factors and the treatment-related consequences.


METHODS
Data from the Copenhagen service mammography screening were linked to data from the DBCG database.


RESULTS
Before screening, 16% of breast cancer cases had a tumour size of 10 mm or less, this percentage increased to 41 in the screen-detected cases. Sixty per cent of breast cancer cases showed no evidence of metastatic spread to axillary lymph nodes before screening; this percentage increased to 78 per cent in the screen-detected cases. Forty per cent of ductal carcinomas showed a malignancy grade I before screening, compared to 53% in the screen-detected cases. Thirteen per cent were treated with breast conserving therapy before screening, as opposed to 48% in the screen-detected cases. Forty-one per cent needed postoperative adjuvant treatment before screening, compared with 21% in the screen-detected cases.


CONCLUSIONS
A marked improvement was seen in the prognostic and treatment-related characteristics of the screen-detected breast cancer cases, as compared to breast cancer cases from the same area before screening was initiated.
Tange
Ulla Brix
UB
Onkologisk klinik 5073, Finsencentret, H:S Rigshospitalet, DK-2100 København.
Hirsch
Fred R
FR
Jensen
Maj-Britt
MB
Olsen
Anne Helene
AH
Blichert-Toft
Mogens
M
Rank
Fritz E
FE
Vejborg
Ilse M M
IM
Mouridsen
Henning
H
Lynge
Elsebeth
E
D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008327:Mammography; D008403:Mass Screening; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis