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Study objective-The aim ofthe study was to determine whether thermography could be used to identify women with breast cancer or women at risk of developing the disease within five years.Design-Women were screened for breast cancer and a documentary follow up was conducted five years later through general practitioner records.Setting MethodsWomen were recruited to the project by two methods:(1) We identified 8235 women aged 40 to 65 through the age/sex registers of six general practices in the Bath area, who were then sent personal letters from their own doctors inviting them to take part. Of these, 4284 (52% ) accepted.(2) There were also 5954 women in the same age group who volunteered to take part after reading about the project on posters in general practitioners' waiting rooms throughout the Bath Health District, or hearing about it from friends and work mates. Within this group there were 229 symptomatic women. As pain was such a common complaint, for the purpose of this study symptoms were confined to skin tethering, a discrete lump, or nipple abnormality.After receiving an explanation of the aims ofthe project and the methods employed, each woman gave a history while cooling for her thermogram. Two thermographic systems were used: a scanner developed by AWRE, Aldermaston, in conjunction with Barr and Stroud, and a system made by Rank Precision Industries. The women cooled for 10 min at an ambient temperature of