Don't worry -- it's just a little cancer.

We've been told all those mammograms aren't necessary, all those pap smears aren't necessary, and men don't need all those prostate tests. Now we're being told that if we do happen to be diagnosed with breast cancer, in many cases, we don't need all that treatment.

I can't help but think that these new ideas are driven by the Obama Administration promise to decrease the cost of health care. Certainly it won't cost so much if you don't use it! And I wonder if the studies cited in this article weren't begun with the desired result already in mind -- "the research is aimed at curbing overtreatment."

Some of the recommendations coming out of these studies:

Many "older" women can skip radiation for early-stage tumors.
If the cancer has already spread, you don't need surgery.
Only "light" chemo is needed.

According to Dr. C. Kent Osborne of Baylor College of Medicine, the trend is "less and less therapy."

Sounds good, but I don't know if it will still sound good if I'm the one with the dreaded diagnosis.

"Selective approach to breast cancer treatment is backed." The Dallas Morning News; December 12, 2013; p. 5A.