Michael Simon, M.D.,
MPH, leader of the Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Team and co-leader of the
Population Studies and Disparities Research Program at the Barbara Ann Karmanos
Cancer Institute, recently received the 2015 Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
Foundation McDevitt Excellence in Research Award for Physicians in the area of clinical
research. The award was given for his investigation into mammography use and the
rates of breast cancer mortality in women 75 years and older.
The award
provides $10,000 to be used for clinical
or health policy research.
“I want to thank the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
Foundation for this award and for providing support for future investigations
into breast cancer and mammography use,” said Dr. Simon. “It is
critical that we continue to look into how mammography can save women’s lives
when it comes to detecting this disease. Mammography continues to be the first
line of defense in finding breast cancer early when it can be more easily
treatable.”
Dr. Simon and fellow scientists published this work
in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment in 2014. The article is
titled, “Mammography interval and breast cancer mortality in women over
the age of 75.”
The purpose of the study was to evaluate the relationship
between mammography interval and breast cancer mortality among older women with
breast cancer. Study results suggested that the longer the time between
diagnosis and the last self-reported mammogram was associated with higher rates
of mortality due to either breast cancer or any cause of death.
The suggested relationship between mammography interval and
breast cancer mortality is particularly relevant for women 75 years of age or
older at diagnosis in light of the 2009 U.S. Preventative Services Task Force
recommendations, which reported a lack of evidence as a support for not
performing screening mammography after the age of 74.
The results of the study suggest a continued role for
mammography screening after the age of 75 years in light of the overall health
of the individual woman.
The
research represents a collaboration between Dr. Simon and researchers from Albert
Einstein College of Medicine in New York, the University
of Arizona Cancer Center; Fred Hutchinson Cancer
Research Center in Seattle; the University
of California in Irvine; the Washington Cancer Institute
and MedStar Washington Hospital Center; Stony Brook University School of
Medicine in New York; and the University
of Pittsburgh
The research represents a collaboration between Dr. Simon and
researchers from Albert Einstein College of
Medicine in New York, the University of Arizona Cancer
Center; Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle;
the University of California in Irvine; the Washington Cancer
Institute and MedStar Washington Hospital Center; Stony Brook University School
of Medicine in New York; and the University of Pittsburgh.
