JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is encouraging women to get breast cancer screenings starting at the age of 40.
RELATED: Mammograms should start at 40 to address rising breast cancer rates at younger ages, panel says
Radiation oncologist Scot Ackerman said that women getting mammograms at 40 will save more lives.
“The recommendation for mammography beginning at age 40 is because we’re seeing an increased incidence of breast cancer in women in their 40s and early 50s. And this increased incidence of breast cancer makes us re-evaluate when women should begin getting mammograms,” Ackerman said.
People like Terri Cooper who witnessed her mom have breast cancer agree.
“I’ve met so many women, since my mother passed from breast cancer that are really just afraid, afraid for multiple reasons afraid to go and get the mammogram and afraid of what the results would be,” Cooper said.
After her mother passed away from breast cancer, she created the Edith Marie Foundation to advocate for breast cancer awareness.
“My mother found her lump in her breast the first and the second time. My mother was in remission for 10 years and her breast cancer came back with a vengeance in the 10th year, but my mother found her love both times,” Cooper said.
Ackerman said it’s been estimated that oncologists will see a 20% reduction in breast cancer deaths in women in their 40s if they get mammograms.
“In getting a screening mammogram, typically is two views, but we recommend what’s called a 3D mammogram. That is a more high-resolution mammogram, where we are able to see very thin slices of the breast and have a very clear picture of the breast tissue,” Ackerman said.
He recommends women who are considered high-risk to get a contrast-enhanced mammogram or an MRI of the breast.
“The contrast-enhanced mammogram, which is a new type of mammogram where a woman receives IV contrast like she would get with a CAT scan. That’s a way that we could do a very fairly quick, a very comfortable mammogram and have extremely high resolution to be able to find cancers that are very small,” Ackerman said.
He said mammograms average about $300 to $350 without insurance.