The director of the National Cancer Institute, Richard Klausner, MD, disagreed with the panel's findings and stated that, in his opinion, the data showed that screening in this age-group was indicated. Physicians and patients alike were left to struggle with the confusing information. The news media reinforced women's already well-rooted anxiety about having mammograms. In most news reports, the concepts of sensitivity and specificity were not explained, which would have helped put the findings into perspective. Few reports commented on the fact that it is better to be too cautious than to risk missing a cancer.
Underserved populations present another challenge for the healthcare community.
For example, women in minority groups tend to fall short when it comes to health screenings, a phenomenon that has many causes beyond economic factors. In all groups, women who had a regular primary care provider did better than those who did not. Lesbians also may be reluctant to use healthcare services because of institutionalized homophobia or heterosexist bias and thus may not obtain vital screening tests. Even the most established screening procedure for women, the Papanicolaou smear, has faced difficult and politicized scrutiny from insurers. Obviously, this is not economically feasible or practical for many women.