The New Mammogram Recommendations

Recently there was a new announcement made by the United States Preventive Services Task Force that is advising women without unusual cancer risks to not begin regular screening for breast cancer until age 50. They also suggested that doctors stop advising women to perform self breast exams. These announcements have led to confusion on many people's parts because it goes against everything that we have ever learned about detecting breast cancer early. I, for one, am not happy that this announcement was made. Here are the reasons why:

From my long years of dealing with all sorts of cancer due to loved ones having it, I have always been told that the sooner doctors discover cancer the better chance there is of survival for it. These new announcements by the United States Preventive Services Task Force go against the grain of what has always been instilled into me. I do not understand how anyone can say to stop doing self breast exams or to not have earlier regular screening for breast cancer until age 50. It seems like really stupid advice to me to ask women to not do a self breast exam since that is when many women discover they have a breast lump.

I was in my early 20's when I first discovered a lump on my left breast. I had discovered the lump while doing my monthly self breast exam. I had been doing them ever since I had been in high school. It was a normal routine for me. I went to the doctor to confirm whether or not I indeed had breast cancer.

I was of the lucky ones, and my lump turned out to be benign. However, what if it had not been benign, and it had been breast cancer? I was smart for learning and doing self breast exams even at an early age. I do not see how it is not helpful to do self breast exams, and it amazes me that the United States Preventive Services Task Force wants me to suddenly stop doing them.

I do not plan on making any changes to my normal monthly self breast exam routine. I will not follow advice that does not sound intelligent to me. Plus, I plan on teaching my own daughter how to do her own self breast exams when she is a teenager. Breast cancer has been proven to be deadly, and it is not something that should not be taken seriously. To me, it is better to be safe and to be overly cautious then just sit back and do nothing. After all, it is my health and so then it is ultimately my decision.