Annual post-breast cancer mammograms urged

BOSTON, July 25 (UPI) -- Older U.S. women who get yearly mammograms after treatment for early-stage breast cancer are less likely to die from the disease.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, examined five years of follow-up on almost 2,000 patients age 65 and older with stage I and II breast cancer.

"Our large study, with nearly complete follow-up, shows that regular post-therapy surveillance lowers the rate of death from breast cancer," lead author, Timothy Lash, of Boston University School of Public Health, said in a statement.

An important finding of this study is that not all older women who are breast cancer survivors are receiving annual mammograms, according Dr. Rebecca Silliman, of Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health.

Experts agree that all breast cancer survivors with no symptoms should get yearly "surveillance" mammography routinely, regardless of their age. "Screening" mammography is for women who have never had breast cancer and "diagnostic" mammography is for those with symptoms.