Women are now advised to start getting their annual mammograms at the age of 40 instead of 50 according to some new draft recommendations from a federal health task force.
Minnesota Oncology's Dr. Sushma Tatenini talked with WCCO's Adam and Jordana about the new recommendations.
“There's 40,000 women that die from breast cancer each year and we actually have been seeing that the number of newly diagnosed women is increasing by about 2% each year,” says Tatenini. “And there's just a higher risk of cancer overall and we're seeing it definitely in younger women.”
Tatenini says part of the reason for the increase in breast cancer could be the fact that many women are delaying having babies.
“Women are either not having children due to careers, due to other things, or just waiting longer,” Tatenini explains. “It’s known having children at an early age and breast feeding are actually protective.”
Experts say deaths from breast cancer could be reduced by as much as 20% if all women follow the new proposed guidelines and start their mammograms at age 40.
“This new recommendation will help save lives and prevent more women from dying due to breast cancer,” said former task force chair Dr.
Carol Mangione.
The task force noted that Black women are 40% more likely to die of breast cancer than white women, making mammograms at 40 an especially important step -– but also urged more research to better understand and combat the disparity.
The task force also noted that nearly half of all women have dense breasts, which means mammograms may not work as well, and called for more research into whether additional types of testing would help.
While cancer deaths have been declining for years, breast cancer remains the second leading cancer killer of U.S. woman, behind lung cancer.
The draft recommendation applies to women at average risk of breast cancer but not those at very high risk due to certain genetic or other factors. It is open for public comment through June 5, after which the task force will decide whether to finalize it.
Health organizations have long had different screening recommendations, seeking to balance catching breast cancer early while avoiding too many false alarms, when the X-rays spot non-cancerous blips.
The American Cancer Society says women ages 45 to 54 should get mammograms every year -– but can choose to start at 40 and then at 55, can choose to switch to every other year.
The American College of Radiology recommends annual mammograms starting at 40 for women at average risk of breast cancer -– but urges that young women get assessed for risk factors that require even earlier screening.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Related
