21 Apr Mammography Screening Changed Little Despite New US Task Force Recommendations

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:

Stacey Fedewa

Stacey Fedewa, MPH
Strategic Director, Screening and Risk Factor Surveillance
Surveillance and Health Services Research program
American Cancer Society

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?

Response: In 2009, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) no longer recommended routine mammography for women aged 40–49 and ≥75 years (younger and older women, respectively). Whether mammography usage and physician recommendation among younger (40-49 years) and older (75+ years) women changed in response to these recommendations is unclear, so we compared changes in women’s self-reported mammography screening practices and physician recommendation for mammography between 2008 and 2013 using the National Health Interview Survey in younger and older women.

MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?

Response: Overall mammography prevalence for younger and older women did not change between 2008 and 2013, except in higher-socioeconomic younger women. During the corresponding study period, physician recommendation fell by 5.0% for younger women and 5.8% for older women, which may reflect physician adherence to the 2009 USPSTF updated BC screening recommendations.
MedicalResearch.com: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?

Response: Overall mammography prevalence for younger and older women did not change between 2008 and 2013, except in higher-socioeconomic younger women. During the corresponding study period, physician recommendation fell by 5.0% for younger women and 5.8% for older women, which may reflect physician adherence to the 2009 USPSTF updated BC screening recommendations. The lack of decline in mammography prevalence for older women despite the declines in physician recommendation may be attributed to a growing proportion of women who receive mammography without a physician recommendation and these women may have a well-established routine of breast cancer screening. For younger women, the disparate patterns of mammography utilization and physician recommendation are less clear and may be, in part, due to lack of shared decision making.

MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?

Response: Further research on shared decision making and continued investigation of mammography trends and factors contributing to these trends are needed in order to help understand the effects of breast cancer screening recommendations and policies.

MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Response: As with any study, ours had limitations including reliance on self-reported data for mammography and physician recommendation for screening.

Citation:

Mammography Use and Physician Recommendation After the 2009 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations

Fedewa, Stacey A. et al.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2015.10.010
American Journal of Preventive Medicine , Volume 50 , Issue 5 , e123 – e131

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Last Updated on April 21, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD