Understanding the Mammography Controversy: Science, Politics, and Breast Cancer Screening - Hardcover

"To help women make informed decisions about having mammograms, Finkel reviews the potential benefits and liabilities of mammography and explains how to find federal research reports and support groups. She also describes the development of breast cancer and its treatments and psychological effects. The book is written for the general reader." - SciTech Book News "[I]n directly responding to attention-grabbing headlines that she feels deliver more fear than fact-based information, Finkel keeps her head and methodically demystifies breast disease....Further, she deconstructs several breast-cancer screening methods, taking into account the cost, the efficacy, and the availability of each. Her gift is for plain talk about breast disease and mammography, which, though admittedly imperfect, is still considered the best prediagnostic tool for breast cancer." - Booklist, Starred Review "The book directly addresses the still-controversial issues, such as deciding when is the right time to have a mammogram, what is the right age for mammography (the body of evidence indicates a benefit for women aged 50 to 69) and whether mammography is useful at all (it is). While not perfect, mammography is the only population-based breast cancer screening method that has been shown to actually save lives....This book includes a timeline that details the disagreement within the scientific community and changing public advice on mammography over the years....The book offers readers practical information, including how to give a breast self-exam, how to communicate with one's doctor, a list of support groups and organizations for breast cancer patients, and resources for clinical trials." - Hospital Business Week/Oncology Business Week/Women's Health Law Weekly/Medical "[E]xamines the questions surrounding the technology and facts about breast disease....Finkel presents the prevailing facts and theorems with wit and clarity, making the subject understandable for the layperson." - The Costco Connection "[D]etails the processes involved in ascertaining evidence of and treating breast cancers, including new approaches and techniques....Useful information; for practitioners and professional collections." - Library Journal "Finkel offers a useful--and for patients, indispensable--book about the most current diagnostic and therapeutic methods available to screen for and treat breast cancer. She devotes a chapter to studies with different findings regarding the value of mammography as a preventive tool; most professional organizations endorse an annual x-ray, even while debating the appropriate age for initiation....Finkel discusses prevailing theories on diet, emotions, heredity, ethnicity, and environment, and shows that there are no definitive answers to explain who will get breast cancer. She is particularly good at presenting the patients' emotions and the importance of supportive medical professionals. The book has no continuous narrative thread; it is more a compendium of information that will be read in bits and pieces, according to readers' particular concerns. This important guide should be a part of libraries' collections because it addresses all aspects of a specter that haunts most women, whether or not they fall victim. Recommended. All levels." - Choice

Investigates the current controversy surrounding the use of mammography to screen for breast cancer Writing to be understood by the lay reader, Madelon Finkel shows us how breast cancer develops and takes us through the controversy surrounding mammography. How valid are the screenings? Who should be screened? How frequently? At what age? And should women be screened at all? This book dissects the issues to help present answers. Above all, says Dr. Finkel, women need to make informed decisions, and to do that they need to understand the potential benefits and potential harm accompanying mammography. This book includes a time line showing changing public advice on mammography across the years. Listings explain how to access reports on mammography facilities, and how to find and contact support groups. Dr. Finkel details the development of breast cancer and its various types of tumours, the treatment options and the psychological effects. Also provided are methods to use - and questions to ask - to best communicate with your doctor and make reasoned decisions. * Discusses the controversy in language accessible to the general reader * Includes practical advice for women