The Women’s Group’s Take on the New Mammogram and Pap Screening Recommendations:
The providers at The Women’s Group support continuing medical research with the intent to improve screening recommendations and therefore avoid unnecessary testing and medical expenses. We regularly review our standards of care to be current with the most up-to-date medical standards.
Recently, the US Preventive Services Task Force released new recommendations for when women should begin getting mammograms for routine breast cancer screening. They stated that mammograms should not begin until a woman is 50 years old and discouraged women from doing self breast exams each month at home.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) currently recommends routine mammogram screenings begin every 1-2 years at age 40 and every year at age 50. Breast self exam is still recommended by ACOG. The American Cancer Society recommends yearly mammograms begin at age 40, and breast self exams beginning in the 20’s. We recommend routine mammogram screenings begin every 1-2 years at age 40 and every year at age 50 and breast self exams beginning in the 20’s. If you are unsure how to do a self breast exam, we will teach you how.
Regarding pap testing, we recommend starting pap testing at age 21 or 3 years from initiating sexual activity, then paps every year until the age of 30. At 30, women can be screened every 3 years if they have a normal pap and negative HPV test (and no history of abnormal paps). The Women’s Group currently follows the screening recommendations set by the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology. The most effective way to prevent cervical cancer is to vaccinate our daughters before they acquire an HPV infection. We have vaccine available.
All of these recommendations can be confusing. Please, if you have questions about when to start your mammograms or pap smears, talk to your provider. Our medical practice and recommendations will continue to evolve as new evidence about the risks/benefits of testing emerges in the research. We do take family history of cancer into account when making recommendations on a personal basis. Given the spectrum of professional recommendations, we do not foresee changes in insurance coverage for these services.
Please contact the office with further questions or concerns or discuss them with your provider at your next visit.
Suggested websites:
American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical PathologY www.asccp.org
American Cancer Society www.cancer.org
Written by the Women’s Group Practitioners Last Reviewed in December 2009
© Copyright 2009 The Women’s Group PC 1