Introduction. The breast cancer screening program was rolled out nationwide in France between 2002 and 2004. The national evaluation conducted by the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance does not include calculations of sensitivity and specificity due to a lack of data on interval cancers. Such data are available only in departments with comprehensive population-based cancer registration systems, such as cancer registries. Materials and Methods. The study focuses on the French cancer screening program for 2002–2005 (2001 specifications) in five departments. Results. The program’s sensitivity (Se) is 82.8% and its specificity (Sp) is 91.4%. The results improve with age at screening between 50 and 74 years (se: 76%–88%, sp: 89%–93%). The one-year se, averaging 94.2%, increases with age: 91%–97%. The one-year sensitivity is lower for the first screening (93.3%) than for subsequent mammograms (94.7%). In situ cancers are more common among detected cancers (16.5% vs. 6.1% for interval cancers). Detected cancers are smaller than interval cancers (40.9% ≤ 10 mm vs. 21.7%). They are more often at stage pN0 (73.9% vs. 63.1%). Conclusion. The performance of the French program (2001 specifications) is at least on par with that of international programs and superior to that of the experimental program (1989–2001). (R.A.)