When two government bodies have different recommendations for breast cancer screening, it just makes me mad. I recently came across a print article that states that the American College of Physicians (ACP) recommends that women 40 to 49 do not need breast cancer screening unless they have risk factors. The American Cancer Society (ACS) recommends scanning to start at age 40 and to be done yearly.There are reasons for this, of course. The ACP is worried that false positives in the screening outcomes of 40 - 49 year olds and the subsequent diagnostic tests that would follow will prevent women from repeating their tests later. The ACP does recommend that women in their 40's discuss the necessity for screening with their doctors at least every two years. The ACS, on the other hand, feels that even if, for every 10,000 women who receive regular screening starting at age 40, six benefit through a decreased risk for death, it is worth it.
The different takes on screening and the different guidelines mean only one thing. Women need to take their breast health and their health in general, into their own hands (literally, in the case of breast self exams). We should be aware of the tests that can be done, the different recommendations for those tests and decide what would be the best for us. We have bloggers on this site that found breast cancer in their 30's. That means that every woman, regardless of age, should own her health.
When we see the different recommendations from two respected government bodies, we have to realize that sometimes it is only their best guess. Or maybe politics play a role. I don't know and I don't really care. I just feel that we cannot let others tell us what to do. We have to make sure to educate ourselves as much as possible and try to make informed decisions that work for us.
Doing our own research and working with health care providers does not need to be mutually exclusive, though. We can work with our team, but we have to make sure that we have as much information as possible. In the end, we are the only ones who can make the right decision for ourselves.Think about it: Who do you trust more when it comes to your health?
1. It is outrageous to recommend that women put off screening until age 50 - or, in my view, even age 40 - under ANY circumstances. My wife was diagnosed with an aggressive breast cancer at age 28 without having a single risk factor. She is by no means the only (or the youngest) one out there. A cursory look at the Young Survivors Coalition's website should be proof positive that health care providers and organizations need to be more proactive about getting younger women screened more often.
Posted at 9:46PM on Jun 3rd 2007 by Dan Canon