Woi ld M a gsx
Testing, testing
Mammograms came under scrutiny in 2009, when an influential
panel of health experts found that the screenings often do more
harm than good. One year later, how are the new rules holding up?
BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON
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I
n a strange tw ist o f fate, Kathy Smith’s
breast cancer journey began when her
closest friend was diagnosed in 2006.
“Valerie called me up and said, ‘Are
you sitting down? I just found out I
have cancer,” ’ remembers Kathy, a nonprofit
development coordinator and mother o f two
in Chicago. Though her friend’s prognosis was
good, the news hit a little too close to home.
“ I was stunned. Valerie was only 44— a year
younger than I was,” says Kathy. “Alm ost as
soon as I got off the phone with her, I called
my doctor and scheduled a mammogram for
myself.” Kathy didn’t realize how urgently she
needed that appointment. Her own mammo-
gram would reveal a cluster of suspicious
cells rapidly multiplying on her chest wall: an
invasive form of breast cancer classified as
stage I IB.
By November of last year, after undergoing
chemotherapy and a mastectomy, Kathy was
finally in remission (and so was her friend).
Then she saw a news report that made her
blood run cold. An influential panel of health
experts known as the U.S. Preventive Services
Task Force had come forward with two
startling conclusions: Most women in their
40s shouldn’t bother getting mammograms
because the screenings may do more harm
than good. And women over 50? The majority
can skip their mammograms every other year.
“ I wondered,
W h y w o u ld a n yon e m a ke su ch
ch a n g es
?” says Kathy. “ Valerie and I owe our
lives to routine mammograms. If we had
followed these insane recommendations, we
might not be here today.”
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BETTER HOMES AND CARDENS |
OCTOBER 2 0 1 0 |
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