RATES of breast removal among women with cancer vary greatly between countries, with Britain having among the lowest, experts said today.
A mastectomy survey among nine European countries and the USA showed that fewer women with breast cancer have the operation in the UK than anywhere else, apart from France.
One explanation for the differences is thought to be that tumours are caught earlier in countries where fewer breasts are removed.
Britain's national breast screening programme is probably a chief reason why cancers are diagnosed at a stage where the breast can be saved.
