EDITORIAL: Life-Savers

Apr 08, 05:59 AM

Current Headlines: By The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.

Apr. 8--Elizabeth Edwards' clear-eyed courage continues to impress, especially now that she's impressing upon women the importance of regular mammograms.

Speaking in Iowa last week, Mrs. Edwards said her breast cancer, diagnosed at the very end of the 2004 national campaign, "had the chance to migrate" because she'd put other priorities above her health. She added, "There are women in this audience who know perfectly well whether or not they're doing what they need to do and get mammograms. If you are one of the people ... obviously you need a new strategy."

"I do not have to be in this situation," she said of the recurrence of her cancer that was revealed last month. Breast cancer strikes more than 212,000 American women each year and kills more than 40,000. It is the No. 2 cancer killer overall, second only to lung cancer.

Mrs. Edwards, who also noted some hopeful medical news about her own prospects, is 57 -- and physician groups are united in urging annual mammography for women in their 50s. For younger women the advice is less clear-cut; the American College of Physicians, which represents 120,000 internists, has reservations. It recently issued guidelines urging women in their 40s to consult their doctors about whether to have the breast X-rays. Yet the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute strongly favor regular mammography for women in their 40s.

The best advice seems to be for women to discuss their individual situations with their doctors but to recognize the value of discovering any tumors early. They should listen to Elizabeth Edwards' words as well.

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Copyright (c) 2007, The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.

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