Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography Screening
Authors: Mette Kalager, Hans-Olov Adami, Michael Bretthauer, Rulla M. Tamimi
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2012)

Letters7 August 2012Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography ScreeningMette Kalager, MD, Hans-Olov Adami, MD, PhD, Michael Bretthauer, MD, PhD, and Rulla M. Tamimi, ScDMette Kalager, MDFrom Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115; Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo, Norway; and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.Search for more papers by this author, Hans-Olov Adami, MD, PhDFrom Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115; Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo, Norway; and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.Search for more papers by this author, Michael Bretthauer, MD, PhDFrom Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115; Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo, Norway; and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.Search for more papers by this author, and Rulla M. Tamimi, ScDFrom Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115; Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo, Norway; and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-157-3-201208070-00025 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:Ms. Falk and colleagues state that the correct number of women invited to the screening program is 592 155. However, based on data provided to us by the Cancer Registry of Norway, approximately 496 157 women were invited to the screening program in our study period. Furthermore, they may have misunderstood our estimates of overdiagnosis, which were based on 4 groups of women, comparing current with historical groups. The actual number of invited women is not included in any of our estimates. As shown in our article, we estimated the number of overdiagnosed women as the number of women with ...References1. Kalager M, Zelen M, Langmark F, Adami HO. Effect of screening mammography on breast-cancer mortality in Norway. N Engl J Med. 2010;363:1203-10. [PMID: 20860502] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Zahl PH, Mæhlen J. Overdiagnosis of breast cancer after 14 years of mammography screening. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen. 2012;132:414-7. [PMID: 22353833] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Mette Kalager, MD; Hans-Olov Adami, MD, PhD; Michael Bretthauer, MD, PhD; Rulla M. Tamimi, ScDAffiliations: From Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115; Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo, Norway; and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M11-1560. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoOverdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer Due to Mammography Screening: Results From the Norwegian Screening Program Mette Kalager , Hans-Olov Adami , Michael Bretthauer , and Rulla M. Tamimi Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography Screening Ragnhild Sørum Falk , Solveig Hofvind , and Per Skaane Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography Screening Karsten J. Jørgensen Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography Screening Tor Haldorsen , Steinar Tretli , and Giske Ursin Overdiagnosis of Invasive Breast Cancer due to Mammography Screening Per-Henrik Zahl Metrics Cited byEstimating the frequency of indolent breast cancer in screening trialsRecognizing the Limitations of Cancer Overdiagnosis Studies: A First Step Towards Overcoming ThemThe benefits and harms of breast cancer screening: an independent review 7 August 2012Volume 157, Issue 3Page: 221-222KeywordsBreast cancerCancer detection and diagnosisCancer screeningConflicts of interestDisclosureHormonesMammographyMenopauseRunning ePublished: 7 August 2012 Issue Published: 7 August 2012 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2012 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...