Expert finds group's new breast cancer screening guidelines concerning and disappointing
The second-largest physicians' group in the U.S. has issued a surprising switch in breast cancer screening recommendations.
The American College of Physicians just released new guidance that advises women to get mammography screenings every two years starting at age 50. This contradicts what many doctors have recommended for years.
The American Cancer Society recommends women ages 45 to 54 get mammograms every year. The American College of Radiology says women should get a mammogram every year starting at age 40.
Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women ages 20 to 49 years old in the U.S.
Dr. Sonya Bhole, a breast radiologist and associate professor at Northwestern Medicine, called the new recommendation from the American College of Physicians concerning and disappointing.
"We know the most lives saved are when we start screening mammography at age 40 and screen every year. Breast cancer incidence is on the rise. It's on the rise in women under 50 at 1.4% per year. That's a big number when you think about how many women there are," Bhole said, "and so screening mammography at age 40 allows us to catch cancers at the smallest size when they're most treatable."
Bhole said the new recommendations carry a risk of cancers being missed until it's too late to treat them easily.
"So when we change that time interval to every two years, it really changes outcomes and treatment. When we talk about screening examinations in medicine, timing is truly important, and that's especially true for screening mammography," Bhole said. "Waiting two years allows that cancer to grow. And in women, particularly under 50, the cancers can be more aggressive and grow quicker."
Certain specific demographics of women are particularly at risk with the new recommendations, according to Bhole.
"Women ages 40 to 49 are particularly at risk at these new recommendations; omen that have dense breast tissue and women that might have a family history or elevated risk," Bhole said, "and that's why we always say, you've heard me say women by age 25 should all be risk-assessed, so they know when they should personally start screening mammograms. Women with a family history or dense breast tissue might also qualify for screening with supplemental ultrasound."