Differential appraisal of age thresholds for mammographic screening in Holland and Switzerland

Information campaigns on breast cancer screening need to convince women above 50 years of age to have biannual mammograms, and women below 50 years of age that regular mammograms are not recommended for them. Earlier experiments in the Netherlands showed that type of evidence (statistical vs. anecdotal) and message framing (gain vs. loss) had no effects on attitudes to breast cancer screening. It also emerged that screening was widely accepted for women above 50, but women were reluctant to accept the exclusion of women under 50 from routine screening, although many and good arguments for this were presented.