False-Positive Mammograms May Deter Women from Future Screenings: Research Finds
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A major, new study led by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that women who received a false-positive result that required additional imaging or biopsy were less likely to return for that follow-up screening.
The research was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine and analyzed data on more than 3.5 million screening mammograms nationwide performed between 2005-2017 on over 1 million patients aged 40 to 73.
The study found that 77% of women with a negative result from a mammogram returned for subsequent screening. But this percentage dropped to 61% after a false-positive finding requiring another mammogram in six months to confirm the results and 67% if a biopsy was recommended. The impact was even more pronounced for women who received false-positive results on two consecutive mammograms recommending short-interval follow-up -- only 56% returned their next screening mammogram.
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