New study questions whether annual mammograms are necessary for most women

A new study suggests that annual mammograms may not be the only effective approach for preventing breast cancer.

The research, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), tested a risk-based breast cancer screening approach against standard annual mammography.

The WISDOM randomized clinical trial, led by study authors from universities and healthcare systems across the U.S., considered more than 28,000 women aged 40 to 74 years old, splitting them into a risk-based screening group and an annual mammography group.

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Researchers calculated each woman’s individual risk based on genetics (sequencing of nine breast cancer genes) and other health factors. 

Those who were at the highest risk were advised to alternate between a mammogram and an MRI scan every six months. Patients with elevated risk were told to get an annual mammography and counseling.

Average-risk women were guided to get mammograms every two years, while low-risk individuals were advised to have no screening until they became higher risk or reached age 50.

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The researchers found that risk-based screening did not lead to more advanced cancer diagnoses (stage 2B or higher) compared with annual screening, indicating that it is just as safe as traditional methods. The risk-based approach, however, did not reduce the number of biopsies overall, as researchers had hoped.

Among the risk-based group of women, those with higher risk had more screening, biopsies and detected cancers. Women at lower risk had fewer procedures.

“[The] findings suggest that risk-based breast cancer screening is a safe alternative to annual screening for women aged 40 to 74 years,” the researchers noted in the research summary. “Screening intensity matched individual risk, potentially reducing unnecessary imaging.”

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Fox News medical contributor Dr. Nicole Saphier, associate professor of radiology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New Jersey, commented that while these findings are important, the study “completely sidelines” what screenings are designed to do — detect cancer early.

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“If you don’t measure stage 0, stage 1 or stage 2A cancers, you can’t tell whether personalized screening delays diagnosis in a way that matters for survival and treatment intensity,” Saphier, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

More than 60% of breast cancers in the U.S. are diagnosed at stage 1 or 2A, where cure rates exceed 90%, the doctor noted.

The trial doesn’t “fully evaluate” whether risk-based screening changes detection at the earliest and most treatable stages, where screening “delivers its greatest benefit,” according to Saphier.

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“Mammography is not without risk — radiation exposure, false positives, anxiety and potential over-diagnosis are real and should be acknowledged,” she said. “But it remains the most effective, evidence-based tool for detecting breast cancer early, when treatment is most successful.”

The expert added that labeling women under 50 as “low risk” is “outdated,” as breast cancer diagnoses are on the rise in younger females.

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“Until long-term mortality data support alternative approaches, annual screening beginning at 40 for average risk women should continue,” Saphier added. “Women should be assessed for breast cancer risk by 25 years old to determine if screening should begin earlier.”