US Panel says Breast Cancer Screenings Should Start at Age 40

Facts

• The US Preventive Services Taskforce (USPSTF) released new guidelines on Tuesday, recommending all women undergo mammogram screenings every other year starting at age 40.¹
• Previous advice suggested women start getting mammograms at age 50, or in their mid-40s based on personal risk for breast cancer.²
• Dr. Carol Mangione, a specialist at UCLA and former head of the USPSTF, cited a rise in breast cancer among women in their forties as the reasoning behind the new recommendation.³
• The USPSTF recommendations also call for additional research into the effectiveness of annual vs. biannual screenings, and alternative screening methods for those with dense breasts.⁴
• Researchers say that the updated recommendations could potentially reduce breast cancer mortality in the US by about 20%.³

Sources: ¹CBS, ²NBC, ³NPR Online News and ⁴Associated Press.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by NPR Online News. Breast cancer diagnoses among younger women are on the rise. Changing the recommendations for the age women should start getting mammograms will help doctors catch cancer early, and save lives.
• Narrative B, as provided by American Cancer Society. Lowering the recommended age that women should undergo mammograms could lead to overdiagnoses of breast cancer and unnecessary medical intervention. The likelihood of false positive mammogram results are higher in younger women, and it may prompt a need for additional testing that can be expensive or invasive.

Predictions