The Value of Mammography in Estimating the Prognosis for Patients with Breast Cancer

Abstract

Recent technical advances in the treatment of breast cancer have not had the impact on prognosis hoped for, and for the immediate future the diagnosis of breast cancer at an early stage in its development must remain the measure most likely to reduce the mortality of the disease. In patients with an established diagnosis of early breast cancer, it is important to define those at high risk in order to select the most rational treatment for each individual. Stoll stated in 1976: “Even the avoidance of deleterious treatment alone would undoubtedly lead to very marked improvement in the survival rates of breast cancer patients.”