Lovin' Losing

Good morning everyone!

This morning I had a pumpkin muffin for breakfast.

I’m so proud.  This picture is SO much better.

In other news…

Have you been following the announcement by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force about the change in recommendations for mammograms?  Here is a list of their updated recommendations  for breast cancer screening:

• The USPSTF recommends against routine screening mammography in women aged 40 to 49 years. The decision to start regular, biennial screening mammography before the age of 50 years should be an individual one and take patient context into account, including the patient’s values regarding specific benefits and harms.
• The USPSTF recommends biennial screening mammography for women aged 50 to 74 years.
• The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the additional benefits and harms of screening mammography in women 75 years or older.
• The USPSTF recommends against teaching breast self-examination (BSE).
• The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the additional benefits and harms of clinical breast examination (CBE) beyond screening mammography in women 40 years or older.
• The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the additional benefits and harms of either digital mammography or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instead of film mammography as screening modalities for breast cancer.

Look, I’m no doctor, but these recommendations scare me, especially because my mom dealt with breast cancer back in 2000 and is a survivor.  She was 52 at the time and had she followed these recommendations and only been screened biannually, it might not have been caught in time.  Also, as someone with a family history, I want start being screened around age 35, but now my insurance may not pay for it until age 40 and then only if I find something first, because they’re recommending against routine screening.   But, wait, how would I find it first?  They’re also recommending against self-exams!

Here’s an MSNBC article about the changes.

For now, the Department of Health and Human Service is saying they are not changing THEIR recommendations.

Recommendations for when to get pap smears have also been updated, but not by the Task Force this time, instead by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

What do you think about all these changes? Do you agree or disagree?

Filed under: Health | Tagged: Libby, pumpkin, muffin, Breast Cancer, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, preventive care, self exam, pap smear, Department of Health and Human Services, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, mammography