Fig. 2

Screening affecting three women differently. The first box is the life history of a woman who has an onset of breast cancer, is diagnosed clinically, and dies of breast cancer. The second box is the life history of a woman who also has an onset of breast cancer, but who dies of other causes before this would be detected. The third box is the life history of a woman who has an onset of breast cancer, but also a spontaneous regression, this woman would not have been diagnosed without screening. The fourth box indicates the situation for these three women had screening been introduced. The woman in the first box no longer dies from breast cancer; the other two women do not benefit from screening, they have been overdiagnosed