Women Want to Know More About First Mammogram
Reported June 29, 2005

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- To get a mammogram or not to get a mammogram? That is the question. Actually, women want to know more about the breast cancer screening method before any decisions are made.

A recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine shows women want more involvement in the decision-making process leading up to their first mammogram.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School in Boston surveyed women in their early 40s who had been scheduled for their first mammogram screening. The researchers asked the women to rate the importance of the information they had been given about mammograms. They also asked women about how they preferred to take part in the decision-making process.

Most of the women participating in the survey said they got most of the information about mammograms from their primary care physician. The women also reported being interested in knowing what to do if a mammogram came back with abnormal readings. They also wanted to know how they would be contacted in this instance and how long it would take to be contacted if the mammogram was abnormal.

None of the women participating in the survey said they wanted the decisions about when to get a mammogram to be made solely by their doctor.

The authors conclude women have specific information needs before getting a mammogram. They suggest effective ways to deliver this information, as well as ways to involve women in the decision-making process should be developed.


SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, 2005;165:1370-1374