Study: Breast cancer detection not better with computer aid

New research says computer-assisted detection used in most U.S. mammograms adds no benefit to women.

The technique uses special software to highlight suspicious areas on mammogram images that radiologists reading the scans may have missed. Doctors take another look before making a determination.

Screening mammograms are preventive care and most women don't pay more for the technique, but the researchers say it adds millions to U.S. health care costs,

Previous studies suggesting benefits mostly involved older film mammograms. Most scans now are digital. The study involved nearly 324,000 U.S. women who had screening mammograms, most with computer assistance and some without. The overall cancer detection rate was about 4 in 1,000 women and was identical in both groups.

The study appears in Monday's JAMA Internal Medicine.