When Less Isn't More

The United States Preventative Services Task Force just recently changed the recommendations for breast and cervical cancer screening prompting an outcry from rationing sensationalists that government is again trying to kill its citizens. In summary, they basically said that for average risk women, you don't have to do mammograms until age 50, and even then, only every two years. They've also said to do away with self breast exams, which have been proven to not reduce mortality since the huge trial that came out of China in 2004. The same is likely to come out for cervical screening - biennial screening starting at 21. These recommendations are made by very smart people who have looked at the data and found that the previous screening remmendations were not only overkill, they were probably causing more harm than good. Yes, a rare occurence when evidence appears to outweigh emotion. Yet the crazies are still going to get upset that this is really a way to reduce costs - some have even called this a subversive attempt at "female population control."
I, for one, applaud the USPSTF's courage in trying to shift the way American's consume healthcare. Part of the reason why costs in this country countinue to skyrocket is our complete addiction and over consumption of medications, imaging, and procedures. The funny thing is, I think our national anxiety level is such that people don't think it's a relief to hear it's OK to test less. Let's say, for example you ask 100 women: would you rather be told you have a suspicious lesion and find out it's benign or not be told at all? I bet 75% would prefer to go through the testing, the trauma, and the worry even though in the end, the outcome is the same, and all you did was waste time, money, and peace of mind. It's the fear of the very rare occurrence and the media frenzy that surrounds the missed diagnosis of breast cancer in a 38 year old that breeds this level of anxiety - no one ever hears about the woman who gets staph mastitis from the unnecessary biopsy...