First Person: Why a "Vast" Mammogram Study May Do Harm
The study followed 90,000 women. It concluded that mammograms do not save lives. Critics disagree. So does my wife.
It was 13 years ago, but I remember it as though it was 13 minutes ago.
I was at my office when the phone rang. In a shaky voice, Marsha repeated what the radiologist told her after the second screening: "Sure looks like cancer to me."
I thought of that moment when I saw the headline in this week's New York Times: "Vast Study Casts Doubts on Value of Mammograms." Many other media outlets picked up the story. The Daily Kos gave it this spin: "Vast Study, Mammograms Do More Harm Than Good?" CNN asserted: "Study: Mammograms Do Not Save Lives."
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