Study casts doubt on breast cancer testing

Researchers study original Swedish trial data, which provided evidence for UK's and other screening programmes, and claim benefits were vastly overestimated

Internationally renowned cancer experts have cast fresh doubt on the benefits of breast cancer screening programmes, warning that they save fewer lives than previously thought.

More than 2 million women in the UK have a mammogram - an X-ray of the breast to detect possible early-stage tumours - every year. But the benefits of screening have been questioned, with critics pointing out that it can also cause harm. Some women undergo biopsies only to be given the all-clear, while others may be treated for a small growth that would not trouble them in their lifetime.