Saudi FM calls Indian, Pakistani counterparts to discuss developments    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Arabia cracks down on fraudulent Hajj campaigns, urges pilgrims to use official channels    Nammos Amala Resort to open soon with Saudi-Greek designs    Saudi Arabia completes 674 Vision 2030 initiatives, achieves 93% of KPIs as ninth-year milestone marked    Literature Commission inaugurates Saudi Pavilion at Muscat Book Fair    Saudi Minister of Culture holds talks with his Costa Rican counterpart in Jeddah    Alkhorayef praises advancements in Al-Kharj food industries sector    MHRSD: 80% of recruitment offices are non-compliant with regulations    At least 50 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza    Teenage girl killed in French school stabbing attack    Trump claims meeting with China after Beijing denies any trade negotiations    GACA chief chairs 16th meeting of the Steering Committee on aviation's strategy    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Jennifer Lopez dazzles in Jeddah with a Formula 1 performance    Saudi Arabia open to expanded 64-team World Cup in 2034, says sports minister    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Film Commission launches 'Cinema' initiative to enhance content    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Study links rise in Mastectomies to M.R.I.
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 17 - 05 - 2008

New techniques for detecting breast cancer may be leading more women to have their entire breast removed, researchers said Thursday.
The study found that at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., the percentage of women opting for mastectomy rather than lumpectomy began rising sharply after 2003, in reversal of a previously downward trend.
It is not clear that the experience at the clinic reflects that of the entire nation, though there is some evidence pointing to a wider tendency.
And one possible explanation is that magnetic resonance imaging, which is relatively new, detects more possibly cancerous growths than does mammography. That could be causing patients and doctors to conclude that a lumpectomy, which removes just the part of the breast containing the primary tumor, may not be sufficient.
The study will be presented in Chicago at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, which begins May 30, but was discussed in a telephone news conference on Thursday.
The society made available on Thursday night the abstracts for most studies to be presented at the conference. This is the first year it has released such information in advance. In the past, it usually sent abstracts in advance only to its members. But that allowed cancer doctors, or Wall Street investors with access to those doctors, to trade on information about the results of clinical trials before the data became public.
Among the other studies to be presented at the conference is one that found that patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer who had low levels of vitamin D had a much greater probability of dying or experiencing a spread of the cancer than patients with sufficient levels of the vitamin.
But the research was not designed to establish that vitamin D deficiency was the cause of the worse prognosis. So Dr. Pamela J. Goodwin of the University of Toronto, an author of the study, said it would be premature to recommend that breast cancer patients take megadoses of vitamin D.
Dr. Julie R. Gralow, a breast cancer specialist at the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, concurred.
“We have no idea whether correcting a vitamin D deficiency will alter these outcomes,” said Dr. Gralow, chairwoman of the oncology society's communications committee.
The study followed 512 women treated for early-stage breast cancer in Toronto from 1989 to 1995, and tracked them through 2007. Those with vitamin D levels so low at the time of diagnosis as to be deemed deficient had nearly twice the risk of the cancer's recurring or spreading as those with sufficient levels, and a 73 percent greater risk of dying. Only 24 percent of the women had sufficient levels at the time of diagnosis.
The mastectomy study followed more than 5,400 women who had surgery at the Mayo Clinic from 1997 to 2006. The share of those choosing mastectomy instead of lumpectomy fell to 30 percent in 2003 from 45 percent in 1997, then turned and rose to 43 percent in 2006.
Dr. Matthew P. Goetz of the Mayo Clinic, an author of the study, said he suspected that one reason for the rise in mastectomies was the increasing use of M.R.I. scans starting around 2003.
Among women having breast surgery from 2003 to 2006, 52 percent of those who had an M.R.I. before the operation elected mastectomy, compared with 38 percent of the women who did not have an M.R.I., Dr. Goetz said.
But the mastectomy rate went up after 2003 even among women who had not had an M.R.I. scan. So other factors may be behind the increase as well, Dr. Goetz said, including improved techniques for breast reconstruction and the use of genetic testing to identify women likely to have a recurrence.
With mastectomy a much more radical procedure than lumpectomy, doctors say, it would be a concern if women were undergoing it needlessly.
Studies have shown that women who have mastectomies do not live longer than those who get a lumpectomy followed by radiation to treat any tiny tumors remaining. Those who get mastectomies do have a lower chance of cancer's recurring in the little that remains of the breast, however. And they usually do not require radiation treatment.
A study last year found an increase in women choosing to have their healthy breast surgically removed with their affected breast.
Dr. Gralow, of the University of Washington, said she had noticed an increase in the mastectomy rate in her own practice as well.
She said this was mainly among younger, well educated Caucasian women who wanted to avoid the frequent mammograms and biopsies needed to detect a possible recurrence.
“They really understand they are not impacting their overall survival,” she said. “They are impacting their local recurrence.” - NYT __


Clic here to read the story from its source.