Mammography Screening: Truth, Lies and Controversy

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'This book gives plenty of examples of ad hominem attacks, intimidation, slander, threats of litigation, deception, dishonesty, lies and other violations of good scientific practice. For some years I kept a folder labeled Dishonesty in breast cancer screening on top of my filing cabinet, storing articles and letters to the editor that contained statements I knew were dishonest. Eventually I gave... Read more

'This book gives plenty of examples of ad hominem attacks, intimidation, slander, threats of litigation, deception, dishonesty, lies and other violations of good scientific practice. For some years I kept a folder labeled Dishonesty in breast cancer screening on top of my filing cabinet, storing articles and letters to the editor that contained statements I knew were dishonest. Eventually I gave up on the idea of writing a paper about this collection, as the number of examples quickly exceeded what could be contained in a single article.' From the Introduction The most effective way to decrease women's risk of becoming a breast cancer patient is to avoid attending screening. Mammography screening is one of the greatest controversies in healthcare, and the extent to which some scientists have sacrificed sound scientific principles in order to arrive at politically acceptable results in their research is extraordinary. In contrast, neutral observers increasingly find that the benefit has been much oversold and that the harms are much greater than previously believed. This groundbreaking book takes an evidence-based, critical look at the scientific disputes and the information provided to women by governments and cancer charities. It also explains why mammography screening is unlikely to be effective today. All health professionals and members of the public will find these revelations disturbingly illuminating. It will radically transform the way healthcare policy makers view mammography screening in the future. 'If Peter Gotzsche did not exist, there would be a need to invent him ...It may still take time for the limitations and harms of screening to be properly acknowledged and for women to be enabled to make adequately informed decisions. When this happens, it will be almost entirely due to the intellectual rigour and determination of Peter Gotzsche.' From the Foreword by Iona Heath, President, RCGP 'If you care about breast cancer, and we all should, you must read this book. Breast cancer is complex and we cannot afford to rely on the popular media, or on information from marketing campaigns from those who are invested in screening. We need to question and to understand. The story that Peter tells matters very much.' From the Foreword by Fran Visco, President, National Breast Cancer Coalition. Read less

1. Introduction 2. Important issues in cancer screening 3. Does screening work in Sweden? 4. Stonewalling the Cochrane report on screening 5. Troubling results in the Lancet 6. Harms dismissed by the Cochrane Breast Cancer Group 7. The Lancet publishes the harms of screening 8. Delayed media storm in the United States after our 2001 reviews 9. The Danish National Board of Health circles the wagons 10. US and Swedish 2002 meta-analyses 11. Scientific debates in the United States 12. Publication of entire Cochrane review obstructed for 5 years 13. Editorial misconduct in the European Journal of Cancer 14. Tabár’s ‘beyond reason’ studies 15. Other observational studies of breast cancer mortality 16. Overdiagnosis and overtreatment 17. Ad hominem attacks: a measure of desperation? 18. US recommendations for women aged 40–49 years 19. What have women been told? 20. Extraordinary exaggerations 21. Tabár threatens the BMJ with litigation 22. Falsehoods and perceived censorship in Sweden 23. Celebrating 20 years of breast screening in the United Kingdom 24. Can screening work? 25. Where is screening at today? 26. Where next?

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Biography

Peter C Gotzsche Professor of Clinical Research Design and Analysis, Director, The Nordic Cochrane Centre and Chief Physician, Rigshospitalet and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Mammography Screening Truth, Lies and Controversy

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Table of Contents

Author(s)

Biography

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