False alarms : Nearly one third of all American women who undergo annual breast cancer checkups for a decade can expect to get at least one false alarm, wrongly suggesting the presence of a tumor, according to new research that focuses on the hidden financial and emotional costs of breast cancer screening. The new study the most comprehensive of its kind ever conducted, suggests that for every $100 the nation spends on breast cancer screening, an additional $33 is spent on follow up tests that ultimately show a seemingly positive result to be negative.