Research based on almost 40,000 breast cancer sufferers in Norway found that between 15–25% of those women were over-diagnosed and were subsequently treated unnecessarily with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or even surgery.
Further to this study, carried out by researchers from the 
Harvard School of Public Health, USA, the screening measures in England are now being reviewed and re-assessed.
Proponents of breast screening emphasise that for every 2500 women screened, one woman was successfully treated for breast cancer and a death was prevented, however critics note that these figures mean that six to ten women were treated without any need, a serious risk of modern breast screening.
The authors wrote that “…radiologists have been trained to find even the smallest of tumours in a bid to detect as many cancers as possible… however, this practice has caused a problem for women – diagnosis of breast cancer that wouldn’t cause symptoms or death.”
For independent and impartial advice from the leading experts in the field of breast screening please click here to see opinions for and against the current NHS Breast Screening Programme.
