Playing the odds to save money.

[Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/20/health/20assess.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

I believe in evidence based medicine, but I also believe Medicine and Nursing is an art and science.

According to the above article :

"People are being asked to think differently about risk," said Sheila M. Rothman, a professor of public health at Columbia University. "The public state of mind right now is that they're frightened that evidence-based medicine is going to be equated with rationing. They don't see it in a scientific perspective."

For decades, the medical establishment, the government and the news media have preached the mantra of early detection, spending untold millions of dollars to spread the word. Now, the hypothesis that screening is vital to health and longevity is being turned on its head, with researchers asserting that mammograms and Pap smears can cause more harm than good for women of certain ages'

I was diagnosed at age 40 with a very aggressive breast cancer, I had zero risk factors and had a huge tumor ( over 3 cm) that no one could feel. How would this evidence based practice save my life ? What was the risk of having a mammogram?

Has a women died because of mammogram or pap smear? I would rather have a week of anxiety than die.

What's next scale down colonscopy screenings ? Cholesterol testing ?