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Health Care Providers Dispute Breast Cancer Guidelines

Study Says Self-Exams Don't Work

Updated: 1:29 pm CST November 19, 2009

Some health care providers continue to be at odds with new recommendations on breast cancer screening announced by a government task force.

Guidelines from the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force state that digital mammography doesn't offer any greater benefit or harm than traditional film mammography.

Dr. Gale Sisney, chief of breast imaging for the Carbone Cancer Center, said she disputes the claim, backing up her argument with research conducted by the National Cancer Institute. Popularly known as the D-MIST study, the digital mammographic imaging screening trial involved nearly 50,000 women, WISC-TV reported.

"This is a debate that I think was settled more than three or four years ago. That digital mammography does improve detection rates in younger women and women with dense breasts," said Sisney.

D-MIST, unlike the new USPSTF guidelines, has been peer reviewed, she said.

"This is a very good example of a piece of data or clinical trial in a publication that has been ignored by this task force," said Sisney.

"We are going to get to the bottom of this. We are going to have some serious discussions," said Michelle Heitzinger, of Madison’s Susan G. Komen affiliate.

She said the group wants women to continue with self-exams, in spite of the USPSTF's statement. It also wants women to continue with routine mammography.

"At this point, there is disagreement, and until we figure out what the basis is for those disagreements, we want women to continue getting screened if (they're) at average or above risk for getting breast cancer," said Heitzinger.

The new USPSTF guidelines said there is no proof self-examines work.

"That doesn't mean there's no benefit. We certainly know people who have found their own breast cancer on self-breast exam," said Sisney.

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