A UK study suggests that breast cancer survivors might require fewer mammograms post-surgery.
Annual mammograms are often recommended indefinitely for breast cancer survivors in many countries, but this new research suggests less frequent screening is just as good.
The findings were presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2023 and challenge the necessity of annual mammograms for women aged 50 and older who have undergone curative breast cancer surgery.
Researchers from the University of Warwick, led by Dr Janet A Dunn, unveiled the results of Mammo-50 that aimed to identify the ideal frequency for mammographic surveillance.
The research, encompassing 5,235 women aged 50 or above who had received curative treatment for breast cancer, revealed that there was no substantial discrepancy in survival rates, recurrence or overall survival between those who underwent annual mammograms versus those with less frequent screenings.
Participants were randomly assigned either annual mammograms or less frequent screenings (every other year for wide local excision patients and every three years for mastectomy patients).
This was despite a 35% missed mammogram rate due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After a median follow-up of 5.7 years, the findings indicated that less frequent mammograms were as effective as annual screenings.
Both groups showed comparable rates of breast cancer-specific survival (98.1% versus 98.3%), recurrence-free interval (94.1% versus 94.5%), and overall survival (94.7% versus 94.5%).
Moreover, the study assessed the patients’ quality of life, revealing that distress levels did not significantly differ between those undergoing annual or less frequent mammograms.
Dr Dunn emphasised the study's implications: ‘Mammo-50 demonstrates that for patients aged 50 years or older and three years post-diagnosis, less frequent mammograms are non-inferior to annual screenings.’
However, she underscored the importance of ensuring accessible mechanisms for patients needing additional support or symptom management.
The findings could instigate a shift in clinical practice.
Professor Janet Dunn is Head of Cancer Trials at Warwick Clinical Trials Unit (CTU) at Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick. She has over 30 years of clinical trials experience.
