Debate over breast cancer diagnosis
Posted on: 21/Aug/2015 12:19:48 PM
Usually, when a woman is detected with first stage breast cancer, the one of the first procedures to go through is a lumpectomy or a mastectomy, often a double mastectomy. However, researchers now claim that these procedures do not change the outcomes. A report in JAMA Oncology says that these women have the same likelihood of dying as those in the general population.
100,000 women were studied over 20 years and extensive data was collected. The data was mostly on a the condition that is called ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). DCIS is diagnosed in abnormal cells confined to the milk ducts of the breasts. This diagnosis has increased over the years. With the new study, questions have arisen as to whether DCIS is a cancer at all. Or if it is a precursor to cancer or just a risk factor.
Say experts, (We are) not ready to abandon treatment until a large clinical trial is done that randomly assigns women to receive mastectomies, lumpectomies or no treatment for DCIS, and that shows treatment is unnecessary for most patients... (We have) no doubt that treatment had been excessive... In medicine, we have a tendency to get too enthusiastic about a technique and overuse it. This has happened with the treatment of DCIS.
