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American Morning

Study Shows Mammograms Save Lives

Aired August 02, 2002 - 08:34   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to move on to health news now. A major new study is highlighting the need for mammograms in detecting breast cancer early. Yes? Well, try to figure this all out. The study, done in Sweden, showed regular mammograms reduced breast cancer deaths by 44 percent. Now, as you might remember, mammograms have been a controversial health care issue with a lot of conflicting studies about how well they work.

To help us put this latest study into perspective, Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta at CNN Center -- all right, doctor, is this another case of here we go again?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I really think maybe not, Paula. This might be the definitive end, at least to a lot of the controversy. As you mentioned, been very controversial. Women have been very confused. Should I get a mammogram? Does it save lives or not? Well, the American Cancer Society decided to look at 30 percent of the Swedish population, and they picked Sweden because they have definitive screening programs in Sweden, and found the number, as you already said, Paula, 44 percent reduction in deaths from breast cancer with women who are screened versus women who are not. This is one of the largest studies done on this. It has certainly -- it was set out to basically try and figure out once and for all whether mammograms -- we know they detect cancer early, but do they actually save lives? This study from the American Cancer Society says yes, 44 percent reduction in death, cancer risk, that is the important number to remember.

ZAHN: Well, your life has been touched by breast cancer in your family as I have, and all of us know people whose lives have been saved by these mammograms. Even when you have the conflicting data, there was no suggestion that the mammograms hurt you in any way, right?

GUPTA: That's right. It is a radiology test, so you get a small radiation exposure. But as far as a screening test goes, it has not been shown to actually cause cancer, which some women were concerned about or have any other adverse effects.

One thing about mammograms, Paula, it's an important point is that while they do save lives, and the study shows that, they don't hurt you, but they can sometimes give you false-positive readings, sometimes cause unnecessary biopsies, biopsies that end up being negative, things like that. But overall, the positive side, the plus side, is that they do save lives, and I don't think anybody is arguing with that, especially in regard to this particular study.

ZAHN: But the bottom line is, the whole reason for having a mammogram is to have this test spot a tumor before it is even palpable, because we also need to mention that women should continue to do self breast exams.

GUPTA: That's right. I mean, that's the key to the thing. Early detection -- we have known for a long time that early detection of cancers equals lives saved. Let me -- in fact, we have an animation that basically shows this. When you look at a tumor, it basically starts as a clump of cells. That is something that you can't see. Eventually, as you said Paula, it becomes a palpable lump, a lump that you can feel within the breast. Now that's something that can be seen on a mammogram. There you see some calcifications. That's the sort of thing that they look for on mammograms, and that's the sort of thing that a breast cancer surgeon or a cancer doctor will look at and say maybe that's something we need to biopsy, maybe that is something we need to prove is or is not cancer before it gets somewhere else, like the lymph nodes, or like somewhere else in the body. If you do that, that's how that procedure will save lives.

ZAHN: Doctor, in the end, why do you think there has been so much controversy about mammograms?

GUPTA: It's an excellent point. I think it's worth actually showing a little graph to describe. When you look at screening tests, Paula, you look at -- and I promise not to show too many of these, but this is an important one. You look at screening tests, look at the blue line first. That's the mammogram screening, and if you look at that, the left side is actually the number of deaths, you actually see that the screened group actually has more deaths than the unscreened group for almost a year and a half, and that is where the lines cross. You can see a number more deaths in the no mammogram screening group versus the mammogram screening group. This graph, I think, sort of depicts that. If you don't follow these women out far enough, long enough, it might appear that the screened group actually has more deaths than the not screened group. Certainly, if you start to get even beyond a year and a half in this case, in this one county in Sweden, or at least 10 years, which is what screening tests usually need, you'll see a definitive benefit from getting those mammograms.

ZAHN: I just hope you don't turn around two weeks from now and tell us another definitive study has come along, because I have got to tell you, women are really upset about this, doctor.

GUPTA: Yes, and I think that this one is pretty clear. I think mammograms are a good thing. But as I -- the caveat, I think, Paula, is that I don't think doctors should be content with mammograms. We can still do better. This is a cancer that can be staved off and not lead to as many deaths as it does. Mammograms are a good test, but we need to have better tests, we need to have better screening protocols, and people shouldn't be completely -- take solace in this mammogram alone and say this is it, we're done, mammograms save lives, and that's all we need to do. So that is the one caveat I then interject, but as far as this being a good study, I think it is a fairly definitive study, especially if you look at the data that way. You have to really follow these women out long enough to see the benefits, and they certainly are there.

ZAHN: Well, I for one am relieved. At least people can look at this thing, I think, with maybe a clearer decision making base.

GUPTA: I hope so. I think it's important.

ZAHN: All right. Well, thank you for educating us again this morning. Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Have a good weekend.

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