Performance of mammography in women aged under 40 years

Abstract

By using pooled data from six mammography registries across the USA, 117,737 women aged 18-39 years were identified who had received their first mammography in the period 1995-2005. A distinction was made between diagnostic mammography for women who presented with a breast problem (n = 30,956), and screening mammography (n = 86,781). The age-adjusted positive predictive value of screening mammography was 1.3% (95% CI: 1.1-1.5%), as compared with 14.6% (95% CI: 13.3-15.8%) for diagnostic mammography. Considering the high recall rates, the high number of false-positive test results and the low cancer detection rate, the appropriateness of mammography for women younger than 40 without symptoms is questionable. © 2010 Future Medicine Ltd.