Mammography Screening: Evidence, History and Current Practice in Germany and Other European Countries

In this review, we describe the history, evidence, and current practice of mammography screening in Europe and the newly implemented screening program in Germany. We report results of the first screening rounds in North Rhine-Westphalia and compare these with reference values set by the European Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis. Finally, we summarize and compare performance indicators of the organized screening program in England, Italy, North Rhine-Westphalia and The Netherlands. Based on results of the first screening rounds, we conclude that the digital mammography screening program in North Rhine-Westphalia performs well and complies with the European guidelines. Besides relatively low attendance rates of approximately 53%, implementation of the German organized breast cancer screening program was successful.