Breast Cancer Screening

The medical screening of women who have no symptoms of disease for breast cancer, carried out on the premise that detecting the disease earlier will improve treatment outcomes. Screening programs use a range of methods, including clinical and self breast examinations, mammography, genetic screening, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, chosen and combined according to a woman's individual risk. Universal mammography screening remains a subject of genuine debate in the field: it may not reduce all-cause mortality, and can cause harm through false positives and the unnecessary treatments and procedures that can follow, yet many national health organizations still recommend it for most older women. The United States Preventive Services Task Force, for example, recommends mammography screening every other year for women at average risk between the ages of 40 and 74, though national recommendations vary considerably, from no routine screening in some countries to annual screening beginning at age 40 in others. Women at elevated risk, including those with a confirmed BRCA mutation, a prior breast cancer diagnosis, or a strong family history of the disease, are generally advised to begin screening earlier and to be screened more often and more intensively.