Breast Cancer Screening Pushed Off Until Age 50

By Carlet Cleare

Rochester, NY – Women in their forties should skip routine mammograms until they are fifty.
That's according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a group that gives guidelines to insurers and doctors.

The taskforce re-evaluated its rules on breast examinations to reduce over-treatment.
But some cancer groups say holding off on screenings could allow tumors to grow, and become worse, before they're found.

University of Rochester Medical Center oncologist Michelle Shayne says if doctors accept guidelines for later breast cancer screening, it might not improve survival rates.

"But it could potentially lead to an increase in more aggressive treatments to manage later-stage disease that could intern lead to greater morbidity for our patients and that might incur more cost to society," Shayne says. "So I think there are a lot of unanswered questions here."

Shayne says the task force is trying to optimize benefit and minimize harm.

Barb Meuller, of Rochester, is a breast cancer survivor. She disagrees with the new guidelines.

"I think it's insane," Mueller says. "There are so many people I know who were diagnosed by a mammogram in their forties, and to tell women in their forties that they don't need it, they're not going to go for it."

Mueller says she has no family history of breast cancer, and says she'd be dead if it were not for her routine mammograms.

The task force also suggests women 50 - 74 should have routine screenings every two years, instead of annually.

The new guidelines are not meant for women with increased risk of breast cancer; they should talk with their doctors about screenings.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause for death in women in the United States, behind lung cancer.