Why I won't be having a mammogram

I'm getting close to that age where mammograms start getting recommended. While learning more about cancer testing, we thought we'd learn more about them. I've always heard that mammograms are terribly uncomfortable. Think about it, the try to squish your breast in a vise. What fun. So are they worth it?

The first thing that scares me about mammograms is the amount of radiation involved.

We all know that x-ray radiation can cause cancer.  No medical professional will deny this. Thus the lead apron at the dentist.  Controls about who is near x-ray machines (even family support).  And so on.   With that in mind think about this:

According to the ANS a mammogram has 4 times the amount of radiation as a chest x-ray 1.  And it's fully concentrated on the breast!  Should I routinely blast my vulnerable breast cells with high levels of x-ray radiation, to prevent cancer? It's like they are thinking "we'll keep on x-raying until we find something"  And if they keep x-raying they'll make something and then yes they will find it.  

Be wary of anyone recommending mammograms that simply state the amount of radiation is "small".  Or other vague or subjective terms.  If they are afraid to quantify the amount of radiation then they aren't being open about the potential harm.

The Second thing that scares me is the false positives.

"Approximately 50% of women screened annually for 10 years in the United States will experience a false positive, of whom 7% to 17% will have biopsies".2 A breast biopsy isn't the worst thing in the world, but it still isn't pleasant. Worse yet is the fear associated with it. You get that dreadful panic for the week or two between the worrisome mammogram and the biopsy when you are literally afraid for your life. I've seen friends go through it. It isn't pretty.

Another aspect, and this one was definitely news to me, it is possible to have small cancerous lumps in the breast which go away on their own untreated! Sometimes, these cancerous cells that must be found through a mammogram, because they are too small to be noticed or symptomatic, are not actually dangerous! Sometimes the body can make the necessary corrections on its own.3 So detecting them "early" with a mammogram leads to unnecessary invasive treatments-- mastectomies, radiation, chemotherapy-- and once again, terror. And those treatments in and of themselves can be life-threatening.

"Of all breast cancers detected by screening mammograms, up to 54% are estimated to be results of overdiagnosis." 2

Am I suggesting that no one should ever be tested?

Of course not. If you detect an abnormality, by all means you should get it checked out. I'm wanting to have people consider is routine testing of healthy people with no symptoms. Rather than giving these blanket recommendations, we should be given factual information about the risks and benefits so we could make educated decisions for our personal situations.

There are alternative Screenings.

And there are also alternatives to mammograms, although you rarely hear about them. Ultrasound is also effective at testing for breast cancer-- without the discomfort or the intense radiation.

So why are mammograms pushed so heavily?

It is a big industry and in a lot of ways it is all about the money.  If the number of  mammograms was eliminated or reduced people would lose their jobs. Hospitals would not be able to recoup the money they spent on their expensive machines.4

More articles on Mammograms:

"experts now advise against mammograms"
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/03/03/experts-say-avoid-mammograms.aspx

"Evidence also suggests that risk of breast cancer caused by exposure to mammography radiation may be greatly underestimated"
http://www.breastcancerfund.org/clear-science/radiation-chemicals-and-breast-cancer/ionizing-radiation.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/

"The shocking truth about cancer tests"
http://drjockers.com/new-research-reveals-how-dangerous-mammograms-are/

References:
1. ANS radiation dose chart: http://www.ans.org/pi/resources/dosechart/
2. http://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/hp/breast-screening-pdq#section/all
3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3320224/
4. http://www.whyisamericanhealthcaresoexpensive.blogspot.com/2012/11/mammogram-screening-reconsidering.html