Breast cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer among American women . The U.S. spends $ 4billion ( £2.7billion ) a year on unnecessary medical costs due to mammograms generating false alarms and on treatment for breast tumors unlikely to cause problems , a new report has revealed . The study , published in the Health Affairs journal on Monday , has estimated the figure for women aged 40 to 59 . It is made up of $ 2.8bn resulting from false-positive mammograms and another $ 1.2bn attributed to breast cancer overdiagnosis -treatment of tumors that grow slowly or not at all and are unlikely to develop into life-threatening disease . Breast cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer among American women , claiming nearly 41,000 lives a year . Annual mammograms starting at 40 years old have long been considered standard for preventive care , because cancer is easier to treat if detected early . But recently there has been disagreement about regular screening for women in their 40s . Study authors Mei-Sing Ong , a research fellow at Boston Children 's Hospital , and Kenneth Mandl , a professor at Harvard Medical School , say their findings indicate that the cost of breast cancer overtreatment appears to be much higher than previously estimated . Their $ 4bn figure is the midpoint of a range that depends upon assumptions about the rates of false-positive mammograms and breast cancer overdiagnosis . Apart from the financial cost of screening tests and treatment , false positives and overdiagnosis expose women to risks from additional medical procedures , not to mention psychological distress . It is not uncommon for mammograms to turn up some apparent abnormality that has to be resolved with more imaging tests or a biopsy . 'We 're hoping that the financial cost of this problem will help cast into greater relief the human cost , ' said Mandl . 'The two messages together are powerful . The fact that this is not only a problem , but a very costly problem we hope will accelerate the attempts to try to fix the screening practices . ' But another expert defended those practices , and called the study one-sided . 'There was no attempt to balance the costs with the benefits , ' said Richard Wender , who heads prevention , detection and patient-support efforts at the American Cancer Society . ' I strongly feel that every study that looks at the downsides of any screening test has to be balanced with the benefits . ' The American Cancer Society recommends yearly mammograms for women starting at 40 , while a government advisory group - the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force - recommends that regular screening begins at 50 . The study found that women aged 40 and 49 were more likely to have a false-positive mammogram , compared to women in their 50s . Early detection : Annual mammograms starting at 40 years old have long been considered standard for preventive care , because cancer is easier to treat if detected early . The American Cancer Society recommends yearly mammograms for women starting at 40 , while a government advisory group says regular screening should begin at 50 . Wender questioned the assumptions behind the new study , saying that the authors made a 'very selective choice of estimates ' for the rates of false positives and overdiagnosis . 'There is no debate about the benefits of mammography , ' he said . Mandl responded that the assumptions in his study are supported by other research , and that by definition there is no medical benefit to mammograms that produce false-positive results . The study was based on billing data from a major U.S. insurer , including more than 700,000 women aged between 40 and 59 in all 50 states , from 2011 through 2013 . The U.S. spends much more on healthcare than any other country , but lags behind other economically advanced societies on life expectancy and certain other health indicators . That has prompted strong interest among insurers , employers and government officials in comparing the effectiveness of competing treatments , tests and medications . Cancer treatment may end up being one of the most closely followed issues in the broader debate over healthcare costs and benefits . A different study also published in Monday 's Health Affairs found that cancer death rates were lower in countries that spent more on cancer care , and that countries that increased spending the most made more progress in reducing death rates .
Study estimates yearly figure for women aged 40-59 . Breast cancer is the second biggest cancer killer among American women . Comment: