I have always heard of women that start entering their 40's, have to get a mammogram. But according to a governemtn task force, women getting screened for breast cancer too early leads to many false observations and unneeded biopsies. This is totally turning against what the American Cancer Society recommends; and that is getting screened annually after the age of 40 because of so many cases of breast cancer yearly.
The task force is also saying that self exams do no good and should not even be performed because many women think that they have something when they really don't. I personally was baffled by this entire article because what about families with history of breast cancer?. They say nothing about them and say 'everyone' which I am assuming includes those women as well. I truly believe that if it runs in your family then continue to get these done because according to a spokes person for American Health insurance plan states "insurance coverage isn't likely to change because of the new guidelines. No changes are planned in Medicare coverage either."
The new advice that this task force is giving otu is that women shouldn't get routine mammograms, women between 50-74 should get them every other year until 75, and after 75 all they say is that the risks and benefits are unknown. odd?
This advice was extremely questionable by the Cancer Society where one of their spokespersons stated,"This is one screening test I recommend unequivocally, and would recommend to any woman 40 and over," the society's chief medical officer." And the Cancer Society feels that the benefits outweight the harm of getting theses done for women of all different health backgrounds. Here is another excerpt from the article supporting the need to receive exams, "Mammograms can find cancer early, and two-thirds of women over 40 report having had the test in the previous two years. But how much they cut the risk of dying of the disease, and at what cost in terms of unneeded biopsies, expense and worry, have been debated. "
What do any of you think about this topic?
I have been seeing this all over the news, everyone has an opinion on it. I don't know much about mammograms, but if I had to choose sides I would disagree with raising the age for when women should start having routine mammograms. I think this because there are so many women who would not be here today if they did not find their breast cancer during a mammogram at age 40. The evidence they have for changing the age does not outweigh the risk they are creating for women missing the cancer. Women also find lumps or bumps during self exams. I do not agree much with this new topic, but doctors obviously are more educated than me.
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