The objective of "Donna Informata", a national project funded by the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC) and promoted by Milan's IRCCS Mario Negri, is to evaluate the effectiveness of a web-based tool in promoting a conscious choice of mammographic screening. This is the objective of "Donna Informata", a national project funded by the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC) and promoted by Milan's IRCCS Mario Negri.

The project will be conducted in Turin, Florence and Palermo. In particular, in Turin, a sample of 3,000 women, in the age range of 50-54 years, will be invited for the first time to perform a mammography with Prevenzione Serena and will receive an invitation to participate in the "Donna Informata" study. In Turin the project is coordinated by the Epidemiology and Screening Structure of the University Hospital Città della Salute e della Scienza di Torino.

During the early stages of the project, a decision-support online tool (decision aid) was developed, designed to help women decide whether or not to accept the call for mammographic screening , in the light of the correct information received and of its values, preferences and experiences.

"Donna Informata" aims to answer a problem that has always been discussed among doctors, representatives of scientific societies, health care decision makers, the general population and citizen and patient associations: the need to properly inform women about mammographic screening .

"We consider this as an ethical obligation", explains Livia Giordano, former President of the Italian Screening Mammographic Group (GISMa) and co-ordinator of the project for Turin - "and in particular there is agreement among all promoters that they have to to be properly communicated all the potential benefits and damages as well as the uncertain data and disputes still present among researchers."

The decision assistance exploits the potential of the network, enabling a multilevel approach, depending on the desire for deepening of each woman, so interactively and dynamically; It also helps to solve obstacles related to the different desire and need for deepening of people, in a transparent, complete and pleasantly accessible way.

The project was realized in collaboration with screening experts (GISMa), communication experts (Zadig) and citizens' representatives (the Italian League for the Fight against Tumors) based on some stages that provided for focus groups and review of scientific literature. "Particular attention was given to how to communicate the controversies and uncertainties that still exist on the theme", underline Paola Mosconi, of the MRC's Mario Negri, and Giulia Candiani, of Zadig.