Breast cancer: Personalised screening better than annual mammograms’ — Study
SKAiF NewsNG SNN
By Sola Ogundipe
Breast cancer screening may be on the brink of a major transformation, with new evidence suggesting that a woman’s individual risk, rather than her age, should determine how often she is checked.
A landmark study involving 46,000 women has found that tailoring screening frequency to personal risk levels can be both safer and more effective than routine annual mammograms.
The findings come from the first phase of the WISDOM study, coordinated by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
In the view of the Lead authour Dr Laura J. Esserman, who is Director of the UCSF Breast Care Centre: “These findings should transform clinical guidelines for breast cancer screening and alter clinical practice. The personalised approach begins with risk assessment, incorporating genetic, biological, and lifestyle factors, which can then guide effective prevention strategies.”
The study showed that risk-based screening reduced the likelihood of advanced cancer diagnoses without increasing late-stage cases.
Women were grouped into four categories based on age, genetics, lifestyle, health history and breast density. Those in the lowest risk group, representing 26 per cent of participants, were advised to delay screening until age 50 or until their risk matched that of a typical 50-year-old.
Women at average risk, about 62 per cent of the group, were advised to undergo screening every two years. Annual mammograms were recommended for the 8 per cent classified as having elevated risk, while the highest risk group, accounting for 2 per cent of participants, was advised to receive screening twice a year, alternating between mammography and MRI.
Participants at higher risk also received tailored prevention advice, including lifestyle changes, medication options and access to breast health specialists. Notably, 89 per cent of women in the observational arm opted for risk-based screening, showing strong acceptance of the personalised model.
The study revealed that 30 per cent of women with high-risk genetic variants had no family history of breast cancer, meaning many would not have qualified for genetic testing under current guidelines. By incorporating polygenic risk scores alongside well-known mutations such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, researchers were able to reassign 12 to 14 per cent of participants to more accurate risk categories.
Co-author Allison S. Fiscalini, Director of the Athena Breast Health Network, said: “This is one of the first studies to offer genetic testing to all women, regardless of family history.
When used as part of a comprehensive risk assessment, these results could have a real impact on improving the safety and effectiveness of screening and prevention.”
Since 2016, WISDOM has enrolled more than 80,000 women. The next phase, WISDOM 2.0, is recruiting participants, including women aged 30, to refine risk assessment further and identify those at heightened risk of aggressive early cancers.
If adopted, this personalised approach could mark a new era in breast cancer prevention — shifting resources from lower-risk women to those who need them most, and moving beyond the age-based rules that have guided screening for decades.
The post Breast cancer: Personalised screening better than annual mammograms’ — Study appeared first on Vanguard News.
