Remember the Woman Behind the Mammogram

The ongoing publicized discussion about the benefits of mammography (“Debating Breast Exams,” March 4) is an important one. It is also important to remember that each mammogram is of a person/patient.

And it’s good the patient has a choice. As a diagnostic radiologist, I can attest that it’s an effective tool in finding breast cancer earlier--the result of screening exams.

No one can currently predict the growth rate and outcome of every cancer, and more necessary research is being done in these areas. But when one speaks with breast cancer patients, they are almost always grateful for having had the earliest possible detection--whatever the current prognosis.

DR. MERRICK T. SCHNEIDER

Calabasas