India, Oct. 28 -- Breast cancer is now the most common cancer among Indian women, striking younger and harder than in the West. Today, we see so many breast cancer awareness campaigns across the country and all these campaigns uphold the importance of mammography for early detection. But despite this, almost 40-50% of women diagnosed with breast cancer don't survive because of late detection. This reality raises a serious question: Is mammography really the best tool for catching breast cancer early in India? In India, breast cancer doesn't follow the same patterns as in Western countries. According to the National Cancer Registry Programme (2010-2012) data, Indian women are often diagnosed at a younger age, usually between 45-49 years old. In places like India's North East, this age is even lower (35-40 years). This is almost a decade younger than women in the West. Moreover, most women in India don't get diagnosed until it's already at an advanced stage. While 60-70% of breast cancers in Western countries are caught at Stage I, only 1-8% of Indian women are diagnosed that early. Instead, 30-50% are already at Stage III at the time of diagnosis. Mammography works for Western women. But in India, it's not the same. A study from Tata Memorial Hospital compared Clinical Breast Examination (CBE) with CBE plus mammography. This study found that adding mammography to CBE did not lead to early detection or reduce mortality. On the other hand, studies from the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute showed that women who practiced Self Breast Examination (SBE) every month were more likely to notice changes early. Indian women have unique needs and here we list a three-step plan that may work better: Public health campaigns often hype up mammography as the gold standard for early detection. Breast cancer screening is an ongoing process that needs education, follow-up, and commitment. The author is a surgical oncologist and co-founder of Art of HealingCancer...