I'm glad there is to be a review of breast cancer screening

BBC News reports that the national cancer director for England, Prof Mike Richards, intends to lead a review of breast cancer screening. Well, not before time! Speaking for myself, I'm not a fan of breast cancer screening, by which I mean screening using mammograms. I believe that routine mammography screening to detect breast cancer does far, far more harm than good. Mammograms have definitely been oversold to women and the disadvantages downplayed. Obviously mammograms will occasionally bring cancers to light that need to be dealt with and this may save the lives of some women and that, of course, is a good thing for those women. But there are far more false positives found, that lead to unnecessary worry and unnecessary surgery, and these are usually cited as the biggest disadvantage to this screening. And there are other big disadvantages: the damage and risk of the radiation itself, and the damage from the great mechanical pressure on each breast when it is painfully squashed/flattened between two metal plates for the X-ray to be taken.

What is rarely mentioned is the possibility that the radiation from the mammography may in itself prove carcinogenic to women being screened. - If you look at this Radiation Chart I think you will be amazed/shocked at how high the dose of radiation from a mammogram is, compared with other X-rays. And breast tissue is extra radiosensitive due to continuous cellular growth activity. - And when you consider that these are not just one-off X-rays... - Well, I consider it pretty risky myself, unless there are symptoms to justify the risk. - But screening refers to routine tests in people without symptoms; it's not about following up symptoms. - And consider the effect of the pressure on the breast of being squashed flat between those metal plates.. - This is usually described by health professionals as 'discomfort', but 'discomfort' it ain't! If the skin of the breasts is thin and there are visible, swollen veins, e.g. as a result of having taken steroids, HRT, antidepressants or certain other prescribed drugs, then it's excruciating pain, and, I would contend, actually causes trauma and permanent damage to that thin skin and those delicate, thin-walled veins. I had a mammogram (not screening) many years ago and you wouldn't catch me having another mammogram, ever. - See also this wise advice about diagnostic technologies. And see Dr Briffa's blog article posted today.

Top-up payments will be allowed for all NHS patients, the government is expected to announce, in a move critics described as a "u-turn".

Health secretary Alan Johnson 'to reverse' policy on top-up payments for NHS patients

from the Sunday Telegraph

Extract:

"Alan Johnson, the Health Secretary, is ready to declare that patients may pay for private treatment while receiving some care from the NHS, it has emerged.

The government has been under pressure to clarify its rules after it some NHS trusts told cancer patients they could not buy private drugs while simultaneously receiving free public care while others said the opposite.

In an announcement widely viewed to be made to parliament by the middle of November, Mr Johnson is expected to blame the problem on misinterpretation by some hospitals.

Although the move will be welcomed by campaigners, it will be heartbreaking for the families of cancer patients who died after their NHS care was withdrawn because they topped up their treatment.

The Health Secretary signalled his intention to change the rules earlier this year when he asked Professor Mike Richards, the Government's cancer czar, to produce a report on the issue.

Experts believe he will open the door to more top-up payments because an increasing number of drugs being licensed are beyond the budget of the NHS."

Patients are dying because their doctors are failing to detect that they have cancer, the Government's leading expert on the disease has warned.

GPs' failure to spot cancer raising death rates

Extract from the Telegraph:

"Professor Mike Richards, the national cancer director at the Department of Health, claimed that incorrect diagnoses had become "a significant concern".

He said: "Ultimately, it can mean that the cancer has progressed to a stage where it can't be cured."

He added that failed diagnoses also meant that when the disease was eventually spotted, the only available treatments were particularly aggressive, such as chemotherapy or surgery.

"That could mean a mastectomy, rather than perhaps a breast conserving operation," he said.

The Government has identified late diagnosis as a major reason why Britain lags behind other European countries in terms of cancer survival rates. The disease killed 153,491 Britons in 2005, although death rates are falling."

You can reduce your risk of developng most cancers by avoiding salt and salty food.

See Sodium in foods and

Associated health conditions