Life-saving test

Regarding the Nov. 22 article “Study links mammograms to unnecessary treatment”: Another study that will lead some women to believe it is not necessary for them to get a yearly mammogram. I believe there was a similar study about five years ago.

I had my yearly mammogram in 2006. It showed a new mass that was suspicious. My biopsy was positive for invasive ductal carcinoma. It was a more aggressive type of breast cancer – triple negative. I had a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

I am now a six-year survivor. If I reach the seven-year mark, I am told that my chances of recurrence, metastasis will decrease significantly.

I had no family history of any cancer; there were no palpable masses.

I work in the cancer field and see the majority of invasive breast cancers detected by mammography. Should I have been one of those women who might have heeded the implied advice of this study and skipped my mammogram that year? No, I think not!

Jane E. Brown

Raleigh