New ACS Guidelines for mammo screenings

Q

QuickSilver

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Just had my annual screening mammo this morning.. I understand that the new American Cancer Society guidelines are calling for Mammos only every two years for women of average risk... I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that.. Opinion? Ladies.. how often do you go?

http://chicagotonight.wttw.com/2015/10/26/new-guidelines-breast-cancer-screening

Last week, the American Cancer Society released new guidelines for breast cancer screening, which were published in the Oct. 20, 2015 Journal of the American Medical Association.

The new recommendations for women at average risk of breast cancer include:


  • Begin regular screening mammography at age 45
  • Women ages 45-55 should be screened annually
  • Women ages 40-44 should have the option to be screened annually
  • At age 55, women should have mammograms biennially (women who want to continue with annual mammograms should be able to do so)
  • Breast exams are no longer recommended
Women who are at high risk of breast cancer (due to a family history of breast cancer, a breast condition, etc.) should speak with their medical providers about screening.
 

In England, it is every 3 years from 50 to 70.
people more at risk can start at 47, and may have them more often.
i have been called back once..but all was ok.
it suits me....
 
Here's what troubles me.. WHY do less often mammos on the age groups with the highest incident of finding a new breast cancer?

br_ca_inc_ageprofile.gif
 

England is trailing it to 73....but that doesn't answer your question.
i can't answer it.
 
Or maybe that older women will die of something else before the breast cancer does 'em in? Why bother even finding out? Sounds like ageism to me..
 
Well,obviously I totally disagree with this. In spite of the fact that my surgeon says that if I had had a mammo one year before I did that my tumor would not have been visible. Still,I don`t understand fewer screenings for those in the riskiest age groups.
 
The bad part is that if the American Cancer Society issues guidelines.. Medicare follows them.. So they probably won't pay for an annual mammo.. If that's the case, I'll pay for my own... But what about those who cannot?
 
There are plenty of places where you can get a mammo at no cost-Planned Parenthood for one-but during the five years that I was without insurance,I did not take advantage of those because I knew that I had microcalcifications that they would always want to look at further with ultrasounds and such,so I figured that those would probably not be covered so didn`t bother having the mammo. I just ended up being damn lucky. Like I said,my tumor would not have been visible one year before-but what if I had had a mammo then and then not for another two years? That tumor would have had another year to grow. No thanks.
 
Forgive a guy replying here... In the UK, there has been considerable concern in the medical profession about over-diagnosis and unnecessary treatment.
Estimates range from only 1 in 4 to 1 in 10 of women actually needed treatment, and some senior doctors advise against screening. Perhaps screening in the US is a lot more accurate.

Please don't shoot the messenger if you don't like the message. I'm just reporting what's been happening in the UK.
 
I'm still confused why most countries recommend fewer mammos for older women when they have a higher rate of developing breast cancer. It makes no sense. I really wish I knew the logic.
 
From the article

As with most cancers, the risk of breast cancer increases with age. Yet while doctors tell women to have annual mammograms after age 40, they often advise 85-year-olds to go two or even three years between scans.

The problem, doctors say, is too little data. Large clinical trials, including those that have found that mammography saves lives, tend to focus on younger people and exclude the very old.

The problem, doctors say, is too little data. Large clinical trials, including those that have found that mammography saves lives, tend to focus on younger people and exclude the very old.
A recent study that tried to assess the usefulness of mammography among 80- and 90-year-olds found that very few women in this age group, 22 percent, underwent regular screenings for breast cancer, but that those who did were more likely to find the cancer early enough to avoid a mastectomy and survive at least five years.
The finding is important, because the population of very old people is rising sharply, with a fourfold rise expected by 2050. According to the National Institute on Aging, two-thirds of those over 85 are women.

But the study may raise more questions than it answers. Some experts dispute any suggestion that all elderly women should have annual mammograms — an idea that raises the specter of frail women being dragged from nursing home beds to be screened for cancer when they are far more likely to die of heart disease or complications from a broken hip.
Click to expand...

Now I can understand bedridden 85 y/o women not getting a mammo... But the new quidelines talk about women 55 and older only being screened every 2 years. Now I don't know about you... but I'm 66 and very active and alive. I would like to catch a cancer very early and have it treated...
 
Yeah, agreed. Not exactly the target group you are referring to. But there are arguments both ways, even for the older groups in that article.
 
Here's a statement I simply don't understand

Dr. Petitti and other experts on care for the elderly say the focus on mammography could distract attention from more pressing problems, like high blood pressure, low mobility, depression, chronic pain, and impaired vision and hearing.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure HOW a mammo distracts from treatment of the other problems.

That said.. I think it depends on the woman and her general health and quality of life. I for one will continue to have yearly mammos. My concern is that Medicare will stop paying for them except every 2 or 3 years. I can afford to pay for my own.. but many women cannot.. So they would have to depend on low cost clinics.. like PPH... and we all know that they are under attack.
 
I expressed dismay when I moved to Scotland about not getting annual mammos. The doctor replied 'it's not that we are primitive, but we don't know if annual mammos don't contribute to causing cancer'. When I heard they stopped sending notices for mammos at age 70, I looked further and it said all you have to do is tell your doctor you want one.

In my area they send a 'boob-mobile' around every 3 years, a very large vehicle which is fully equipped and parks in our local hospital car park.
 
I've gotten one every year since I was about 45. My doc still gives me an order for one every year. Like QS, I imagine that if Medicare stops paying for them every year I'll find another way to get one. I don't feel comfortable with the every 2 years thing.
 
QuickSilver said:
Here's a statement I simply don't understand



I'm not sure HOW a mammo distracts from treatment of the other problems.

That said.. I think it depends on the woman and her general health and quality of life. I for one will continue to have yearly mammos. My concern is that Medicare will stop paying for them except every 2 or 3 years. I can afford to pay for my own.. but many women cannot.. So they would have to depend on low cost clinics.. like PPH... and we all know that they are under attack.
Click to expand...

You're right -- that statement you quoted makes no sense at all!
 

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