More mammogram debate -- administration distances itself from guidelines
With the mammogram controversy showing no signs of simmering, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius issued a statement yesterday afternoon in an attempt to distance the administration from the guidelines that have sparked so much debate.
If you haven't heard, a federal panel of medical experts said Monday that women should delay mammograms until age 50 and doctors shouldn't bother teaching women to do breast self exams. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force said its goal was to reduce the harms of unnecessary treatment.
But critics are saying it's a glimpse of health care rationing soon to come under health reform. A group of Republican congresswomen said the guidelines are "a step back for women" and the beginning of rationing. The panel, critics fear, will influence policy and insurance companies won't cover the screens. Many of you expressed similar worries in my last blog post on this issue.
Sebelius tries to debunk this right away: The U.S. Preventive Task Force is an outside independent panel of doctors and scientists who make recommendations. They do not set federal policy and they don't determine what services are covered by the federal government. ... Indeed, I would be very surprised if any private insurance company changed its mammography coverage decisions as a result of this action.
She explains there has been debate for years about whether women in their 40s should get mammograms. I wrote about the issue last year, in fact. And we've shared with you here on the blog the latest debates over the merits of breast and prostate cancer screening.
Sebelius ends her statement by underscoring that mammograms are an important screening tool and that women should consult with their doctor about the tests.
Still, don't expect Sebelius' plea to stop this issue from being political. Some say lawmakers have every intention of passing reform that supports effective treatments that also control costs, and would rely on advice from experts such as the task force to make those decision. This Chicago Tribune story lays out those arguments.
Chicago Tribune photo
Comments
I think we've all been sold a bill of goods about yearly mammograms for all women starting at age 40.
From http://www.preventcancer.com/patients/mammography/ijhs_mammography.htm
'....Radiation from routine mammography poses significant cumulative risks of initiating and promoting breast cancer....the routine practice of taking four films for each breast results in .... 1 rad, focused on each breast rather than the entire chest .... Thus, premenopausal women undergoing annual screening over a ten-year period are exposed to a total of about 10 rads for each breast.... the premenopausal breast is highly sensitive to radiation, each rad of exposure increasing breast cancer risk by 1 percent, resulting in a cumulative 10 percent increased risk over ten years of premenopausal screening, usually from ages 40 to 50....'
I have no intention of subjecting myself to this level of risk before reaching menopause.
10 years ago, HRT was supposed to be good for women. Now it is known to increase the risk for cancer. 10 years from now, I believe the same will be known as true for mammography.
How do we know that all the early screenings via mammography over these past years have not actually INCREASED the amount of breast cancer that we are supposedly attempting to prevent and cure?
Thermography is a much safer, less expensive and more effective alternative to mammography for breast cancer screening. It exists today but is not made widely available to most women. Why not?
Posted by: Jane W | November 19, 2009 9:04 AM