BMJ  2007;335:731-732 (13 October), doi:10.1136/bmj.39350.590625.80

Editorials

Participation in mammography screening

Women should be encouraged to decide what is right for them, rather than being told what to do

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In April 2007, the American College of Physicians—the largest medical specialty society in the United States—issued new guidelines on screening mammography for women aged 40-49. Rather than calling for universal screening, the guidelines recommend that women make an informed decision after learning about the benefits and harms of mammography.¹

The last time a major US policy organisation made such a recommendation all hell broke loose. In 1997, a consensus panel of the National Institutes of Health concluded "that the data currently available do not warrant a universal recommendation for mammography for all women in their forties. Each woman should decide for herself whether to undergo mammography." This recommendation generated intense reactions in the press, public, and government.² Most stories in the press suggested that women should be screened and others directed anger at the panel for "failing" to recommend screening. The panel's chair was summoned before congress, and a US . . . [Full text of this article]

VA Outcomes Group (111B), Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, VT 05009, USA

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