Are we too conscious of breast cancer?

Title: Are we too conscious of breast cancer?

Author: H. Gilbert Welch

Publication: Charlotte Observer

Publication Date: October 25, 2010

I’m a physician who has had concerns about National Breast Cancer Awareness Month for years. They persist despite my wife’s breast cancer diagnosis a decade ago (she’s fine and shares my concerns).

I worry that the campaign has led women to be more fearful of breast cancer than they need be. The “1 in 8” or “1 in 9” statistic, in particular, serves as a poster child for how to exaggerate risk (both because it encompasses an entire lifetime and because it’s not the chance of dying, but of being diagnosed).

Equally troubling is the relentless promotion of screening mammography as the solution.

That the campaign’s principal founder is a manufacturer of breast cancer drugs doesn’t make me feel any better. Nor does the appearance of pink as a fall color in the National Football League.

Knowing my concerns, a reporter recently asked me, “What do you think women should be aware of?” Here’s my list:

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