Study: False-Positive Mammograms May Indicate Later Risk

This story comes from the Yahoo! Contributor Network, where individuals publish their unique perspectives on some of the world’s most popular websites.Do you have a story to tell? Become a Yahoo! contributor A study published this week in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute has shown a connection between having previously received a false-positive mammogram and an increased risk of developing breast cancer later on. The study, which was released on Thursday, was conducted by researchers at the University of Copenhagen.

How was the study conducted?

Scientists analyzed the case histories and mammography results of some 58,003 women, all of whom were 50 to 69 years old. The women were screened from 1991 to 2005, according to My Health News Daily.

What did the study find?

After analyzing the data, researchers found that women that had previously had a false-positive mammogram result had a 67 percent greater risk of being diagnosed with the disease at a later date, at a rate of 583 per 100,000. This increased risk appeared to be prevalent for at least six years after the false-positive results. Comparatively only 339 per 100,000 women who had previously had only negative results went on to be diagnosed with breast cancer at a later date. This disparity showed a decrease from the year 2000 and onward.

Why did the disparity shrink for women who were screened after 2000?

Breast cancer specialist Stephanie Bernik said the primary reason might be attributable to the fact our screening processes have gotten better. The number of false-positive tests in general has dropped since then, according to WebMD.

What do researchers think causes this increased risk?

The study only proved an association, so the causes remain unknown. Still, breast cancer experts such as Susan Love have weighed in. Love told ABC News that women with a family history of breast cancer are more likely to receive a false-positive result at some point. She also theorized that it was possible that the testing involved in verifying the results of a false-positive may cause an inflammatory reaction of some kind that increases a woman's risk. Lastly, she pointed out that the false-positives may be catching subtle changes that do not yet signal cancer, which is why some women got a true positive result later on. But, she stressed that scientists do not know the real reason for the increased risk as of yet.

My von Euler-Chelpin, a researcher and associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Copenhagen, reiterated that improvements in screening technology may account for much of the drop in false-positives after 2000. She said that there may have been a higher incidence of missed diagnoses previously that would account for cancer then being found at a later date, hence the appearance of greater risk.

Vanessa Evans is a musician and freelance writer based in Michigan, with a lifelong interest in health and nutrition issues.

View the Original article