|
|
Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member
Joined: 6/17/2008
Posts: 0
Points: 285
Location: Colorado
|
I've just been reading Dr. Susan Love's blog and found this comment: "I live in Canada where the Cancer Society recommends waiting until 50 for mammograms. This is indeed the same recommendation as in several countries in Europe. It seems like the US is the last hold-out here. May I just say that discussing individual patient cases without any medical history or details is of little value in this debate. The science is what we should be concerned about. Ignoring science in favour of annecdotal evidence is irrational and creates unnecessary hysteria. I very much doubt there is a world-wide conspiracy to doctor scientific evidence in order to trick women and increase the chance of them dying from breast cancer. We must keep the debate logical and scientific if we are to truly serve women."
I agree with this post, and I'm seeing a lot of hysteria out there now. We need to calm down and look at the facts of this issue. Also, let's not forget that mammograms are not without harmful effects. The exposure to radiation is far higher than one gets from an x-ray, and there is also the possibility that the intense compression of the breast tissue can cause a tumor to break up and spread. I wish there were more debate about alternatives such as breast thermography.
|
|
Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member
Joined: 7/12/2008
Posts: 0
Points: 279
Location: Minneapolis
|
One of the letters in this week's Time magazine also pointed that out, that the media are not spending any time writing about the adverse effects of mammography. We need good, non-hysterical reporting so we can weigh ALL the facts and judge for ourselves.
|
|
Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member
Joined: 7/11/2008
Posts: 0
Points: 213
Location: Florida
|
A mammogram exposes us to 1,000 times as much radiation as a chest x-ray.
|
|
Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member
Joined: 6/17/2008
Posts: 0
Points: 285
Location: Colorado
|
Here's an artcle on excessive radiation from CT scans - http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/12/29/Will-You-Be-one-of-the-15000-That-Are-Killed-By-CT-Scans-Next-Year.aspx Both of these tests, CT scans and mammograms expose us to large doses of radiation. But you rarely see any discussion of that. I think we've gotten test-happy, and our life expectancy has actually declined over the past 30 years. I wonder how much excessive testing and prescription drugs have to do with that.
|
|
|
Guest |