LEDA at Harvard Law #704557730 Food and Drug Law Professor Hutt
Winter 1998 Breast cancer is perhaps the most feared disease for
women. Although other illnesses might be more deadly from a
statistic point of view, women seem more concerned about breast
cancer (in fact, breast cancer is the second leading cause of
cancer mortality in women). This fear has resulted in an
enormous preoccupation with the disease, and in particular, with
diagnosing and treating the cancer. And "[s]ince currently there
is no cure for breast cancer or method to prevent it from
occurring, the key to saving women's lives is the early
detection of the disease, when treatment is the most effective
and survival rates are best."1 Mammography is widely used as a
cancer detection device; unfortunately, it is often misused or
performed inadequately. The need for proper supervision and
regulation is of a concern to every woman. I. BREAST CANCER AND
MAMMOGRAPHY In 1997 approximately 180,00 new cases of breast
cancer were detected among women i