Are the biopositive effects of X-rays the only benefits of repetitive mammograms?
Breast cancer mortality rates fell between 1990 and 2000. When something positive occurs in medicine attempts are usually made to explain the observation or claim the credit. In this case, credit has been given to improvements in standard treatments and to increased use of mammography, each said to have made a contribution. Published data on the results of clinical trials utilising high-dose radiation or chemotherapy do not support this position. Improvements in breast cancer mortality are more likely to be the result of the biopositive effects of the low-dose radiation delivered during mammography, based on lower death rates from breast cancer in women subjected to repetitive mammographic screening, albeit with no significant change in all-cause death rates. This is supported by a study in which breast cancer rates were lowered by diagnostic X-rays of the chest.
Kauffman
Joel M
JM
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (USP), 600 South 43rd St, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. kauffman@hslc.org
McGee
Charles T
CT
D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000628:therapy; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008327:Mammography / Q000401:mortality / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014964:X-Ray Therapy / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014965:X-Rays