Katie Couric's Notebook: Mammograms

By: Katie Couric
Topics: Katie Couric's Notebook

To screen or not to screen...that is the question. This week a government task force caused a major stir in the medical world by advising against routine mammograms for women under fifty who are not high risk.

The reasons make sense. Roughly ninety percent of abnormal screenings are ultimately benign. These false alarms lead to invasive tests and major anxiety, not to mention billions of dollars of unnecessary care.

Still, those mammograms could save the life of one woman in 1,900 hundred. If she happens to be your daughter, your mother, your wife...or you...that's the only statistic that will matter.

The American Cancer Society and two prominent doctor's groups are playing it safe...continuing to recommend the screenings for every woman over 40.

Technology must be used wisely...but when it comes to your health, making an informed decision in consultation with your doctor is the wisest thing you can do.

That's a page from my notebook.

I'm Katie Couric, CBS News.

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by Sue_The_Proud_American November 25, 2009 6:02 PM EST: I am curious, Katie. Do you consider yourself a Democrat first or a woman first?

I find it curious that you even address the mammogram topic after you just endorsed Obamacare without reading a word of the bill.
You are a very intelligent woman. Surely you can see why they made those suggestions about mammograms.

Most of us are not wealthy people, Katie. Perhaps because of your status, you will be able to get health insurance elsewhere. Anyone who has really read the bill states that it's goal is to have government control healthcare, to have government make our medical decisions for us.
Are you aware that under the public option, a doctor's recommendation will not matter? It will be up to the panel. Are you aware that the government has to approve of our individual plans if we should opt out of the "public option".

You are supposed to be reporting news. You cannot be a newscaster AND and give your opinions. Either you report the news or you get a show like Glenn Beck and share your opinions.

By the way, I am sure Sheryl Crowe and Christina Applegate are extremely opposed to the government panel's suggestion. Both were diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of fifty. Sheryl Crowe was just getting her annual mammogram. Their lives were saved!
You should be ashamed considering your husband died of cancer.
You're a woman too!!!

Read the bill! Do not blindly follow Obama as you obviously are doing.
You have to be blind as a bat to see he is making lots of mistakes.
I know you like the cocktail parties at the white house, but grow a backbone if you ever wish to be taken seriously.

I have lost ALL respect in you and you used to be a favorite of mine.
Not anymore. You are a sell out.; Reply to this comment


by dotkhan November 22, 2009 8:40 AM EST: Most people have no clue about risk assessment. They worry about spectacular but rare things but downplay something that has a high probability of happening. This can be traced to newscasters repeating over and over the same things so that people believe that it happens more often than statistics show.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200712/10-ways-we-get-the-odds-wrong
These new guidelines are going beyond the hype and is based what on the chances are that women in this age group may have cancer.
The rates for colon cancer occur at a similar rate, but people don't hear or worry as much about that cancer.; Reply to this comment


by rodeorocky November 21, 2009 11:41 AM EST: I am so sad that our grandchildren and great-grandchildren won't experience the freedoms we experienced growing up in this great Nation if things continue as they are now! The life we had as children and teenagers and young adults will only be a memory. This is not only is the fault of the social liberals in our government, but also that of the liberal media like Katie Couric who is hell bent on not reporting the news as she should! I wonder what her grand children will think of her when they are under the government's thumb, this mammogram issue is only the tip of the iceberg. Other cancer screenings will be on the block too, as well as other tests. The Government will say when and they will say how! You need to report on both sides! You are too afraid of being labeled politically incorrect! You have helped to rip freedom right from your children's and grandchildren's lives! Shame on you Katie - be a reporter - do you JOB!!!; Reply to this comment


by jmstallings November 20, 2009 3:06 PM EST: mrs. Couric I am a great-grand mother,a pro-lifer, a christian with a cphd.,and an Obamacan. I think you are "kourageous Miss Katie" and courageous Miss Couric so I will be calling u Miss kourageous Katie. President Obama said in cario from the koran,the torra and the bible"blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the sons of God and he won the Nobel peace prize,I say to u "blessed are u, when men shall say all manner of evil against u falsely for my name sake God says rejoice,and be exceeding glad. Miss Courageous their are lots of us praying for you. God said He is watching over u. and great is your reward .we are your prayer warriors please believe this is not a joke.

courageous; Reply to this comment


by whereisthemedia November 19, 2009 5:39 PM EST: heyArnold47, you say it so well. I couldn't agree more. How is it that tax dollars can go to save the illegal immigrants and their health care while they don't pay taxes yet women have to put off getting a potentially life-saving mammogram? this is an absolute outrage. How is it that our tax dollars (and American constitutional rights for that matter) should go to JIHADISTS WHO ADMITTED TO DESIGNING AND COMPLETING 9/11 via a fair trial in a NYC court? Save that money and let women have their mammograms. This country is spiraling out of control. Please, people, call your senators and congressman and tell them you will spend every waking hour to get them out of office if they continue us down this path of "change."; Reply to this comment

by whereisthemedia November 19, 2009 5:26 PM EST

Katie - tell me why the Palin interviews that you designed to massacre Palin are still on your website? Tell me just one good reason for this. I hope in the end you get what you deserve. you should watch every word that you say in and out of work because inevitably you WILL get caught saying something stupid that will be taken out of context and played over and over. I long for the day

Reply to this comment


by Sue_The_Proud_American November 25, 2009 6:27 PM EST: Good observation and I wondered the same thing.
BTW, during the original interview, I could tell Sarah was annoyed by Katie and that was why she did not answer the infamous magazine question.
I would have done the same thing! It was like Katie was asking her if she knew how to read! And the media jumped on it.
Seriously, do they really think a college graduate with a degree in journalism (Sarah Palin) could not muster up the word, "Time" or "Newsweek"?
She was annoyed at Katie's ridiculous questions and Sarah knew who's side Katie was on. That interview was intended to ruin Sarah Palin.
Guess again! She is back...better than before.
She also has three more years to fine tune her strategy.
Sarah Palin is far more intelligent than Katie Couric and she has a backbone.
It's just that she speaks like a regular person; they perceive her as dumb. Dumb like a fox (or in her case, a barracuda)


by whereisthemedia November 19, 2009 5:24 PM EST: Katie - you made zero point in your notebook entry. As usual, you make zero stand for the American people. You play it so politically correct that you say nothing in the end. This is an outrage. Your progressive, liberal views keep you always at that line but you never cross it. Make a freaking stand for the better for America. Do some real reporting.; Reply to this comment


by heyarnold47 November 19, 2009 4:49 AM EST: To symagry: I find your comments very interesting, as you state you are a physician. One question is, are you male or female? With the "real issue" of "how much each of us is willing to pay to save that other person who we don't know, whose (marginal?) improvement in health survival adds up potentially costing huge amounts of money?
Wow, what type of price to you place on life?
I would think that as a physician, your care for humanity would have no price. Instead of looking at the "big picture" like a "cost factor" which ultimately is a judgement call and negative, why don't we place a more positive emphasis on our thinking and look at how many lives could ultimately be saved! For every one woman who does her own breast exam, finds an unusual lump, has a mamogram only to find out that it can easily be treated so she can continue to live, there are many other people who are affected as well. She could be a Wife, Mom, grandmother,sister, aunt, cousin, or many other variety of relations to people and families. This affects everyone.
We cannot afford to be stupid here.

I guess with your theory, we could just start building another Memorial like the Vietnam Memorial and just call it the Mamogram Memorial for those woman who couldn't get a mamogram until the age of 50 years old, and were told to stop doing their own breast exams, so they died. But wow, for their efforts and saving our country money, we will place their name on a huge rock monument so all the people they were connected to in their life and in our country can come look at their name because they gave up their lives to help save money for our country. This is really sad!

If the administration can argue about wanting to bring foreign prisoners to our Country, house them here for many years, and possibly execute them here with our tax payer dollars, I think we can afford to medically take care of Women by allowing and encouraging them to have their mamograms at age 40 years old!; Reply to this comment

by heyarnold47 November 19, 2009 4:07 AM EST

Katie, I happen to be at my Physician's office today where I spoke with my doctor about the latest mamogram issues that have become the lastest discussion.
He let me know some very disturbing and concerning information.
He stated he attended a meeting between the AMA and Washington, (Obama's Team), where the Medical Doctors in our country are being told things such as; The reasoning behind changing the age of Women having their mamograms to age 50, is MONEY! The way Washington figures it is this:...If a women develops breast cancer at 40 years old and it goes undetected, she will not be alive by the time she is 50 years old to recieve her mamogram anyway. Therefore it will save a lot of money that would otherwise have been spent on tests, treatments and or surgeries. When he told me this, I was shocked!

If this is anywhere near right, the people in this country need to WAKE UP and SMELL THE RAT!!

We do not need to have everything we have go into the toilet!
I know whoever voted in this last election voted for "Change" but come on, we don't need this type of change!

I encourage everyone to contact their US Senators who represent their state and talk to them about this Health Care Bill. And also, the next time you go visit your physician, local clinic, ER, or anyone who knows anyone in the medical profession, ask questions, and then ask some more. All of the answers are right in front of all of us.
We need to step up to the plate and start taking care of us, OUR AMERICAN COUNTRY!

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by Sue_The_Proud_American November 25, 2009 6:15 PM EST: I agree!!!!

{{{{{{{{{{{{{ APPLAUSE }}}}}}}}}}}}}}


by DonnaDove November 18, 2009 10:56 PM EST: Out of all the millions of areas to cut why are they after the women? Of course like everything else the women have to be asked to make another sacrafice for the sake of saving money. I would like to know if they would find some kind of test for the men to be asked to sacrafice. No way, never. Women are still asking to be treated equal in the work place. Now their medical. I will not take that risk. No way, never. Now I have to worry about our coverage. Insurances don't care about health like they are about making the mighty dollar.; Reply to this comment