BREAST CANCER:

BREAST CANCER:: "Early detection techniques such as breast self exam (BSEs) or mammograms don't necessarily extend a woman's life; they may just lengthen the period of time she knows she's sick, as well as the time during which she receives treatment. As Dr. McDougall puts it: 'The real beneficiaries of early detection are the providers of health care, who now have a longer time in which to treat the victims before they die.'"

Ouch - sometimes the truth can hurt !

I am sure we'll all continue advising breast self-exams and mammography, even though they do not help ( and can actually harm) because

1. It makes sense . After all, if you pick it up early, isn't it common-sense that treatment will help ? Unfortunately, we refuse to let ugly facts slay a beautiful hypothesis !
2. We've been brainwashed into believing it helps . Repeating something ad nauseam will do this very effectively !
3. It's become a billion dollar industry !
4. We want to believe that we can prevent and treat cancer - it's a helpful delusion to have.
5. We don't want to accept the fact that everything we've done for the last 30 years has been wrong and unhelpful !