Editorial Informed Decision-Making and Breast Cancer Screening

In a recent Lancet publication, Hersch et al reported find-ings on the influence of alternative-content decision aids on knowledge, attitudes, and intentions related to breast cancer screening.1 The alternative decision aid booklets were provided to 879 women aged 48–50 in New South Wales, Australia who were approaching the target age to begin breast cancer screening. Briefly, the authors rando-mized 440 women to an intervention group which received a breast screening information booklet that included quan-titative information on overdiagnosis, and 439 to a control group that received the same information booklet without reference to overdiagnosis. The authors then administered a questionnaire to all randomized women, on knowledge, attitudes, and intentions relating to breast cancer screen-ing. Based on a woman’s answers, the researchers classifie