Cancer Society Stands Firm: Older Women Need Mammograms, Men
Advice on Prostate Tests
Mammography is effective mammograms work and
women should continue to get them, ACS
Oct. 23, 2009 The American Cancer Society has
issued a statement saying it is not changing its recommendations on
cancer screening, despite a news report indicating a shift in guidance
was being made to emphasize the risk of overtreatment for breast,
prostate and other cancers. Women still should get mammograms and men
should be offered prostate cancer testing at age 50, says the ACS.
The ACS said the questions about a change in its
recommendations appeared in an article on October 21 in the New York
Times In Shift, Cancer Society Has Concerns on Screening.
While the advantages of screening for some cancers
have been overstated, there are advantages, especially in the case of
breast, colon and cervical cancers. Mammography is effective
mammograms work and women should continue get them, said Otis W.
Brawley, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, ACS.
Seven clinical trials tell us that screening with
mammography and clinical breast exam do reduce risk of breast cancer
death.
This test is beneficial in that it saves lives,
but it is not perfect. It can miss cancers that need treatment, and in
some cases finds disease that does not need treatment. Understanding
these limitations will help researchers develop better screening tests.
The American Cancer Society stands by its
recommendation that women age 40 and over should receive annual
mammography, and women at high risk should talk with their doctors about
when screening should begin based on their family history.
The bottom line is that mammography has helped
avert deaths from breast cancer, and we can make more progress against
the disease if more women age 40 and older get an annual mammogram.
Since 1997 the American Cancer Society has
recommended that men talk to their doctor and make an informed decision
about whether or not prostate cancer early detection testing is right
for them. This recommendation also still stands.
Cancer is a very complex and complicated disease.
The American Cancer Society makes evidence-based cancer screening
recommendations, and strives to provide clear messages about cancer
screening to patients and doctors. Our guidelines are constantly under
review to evaluate them as new evidence becomes available. Simple
messages are not always possible, and over-simplifying them can in fact
do a disservice to the very people we serve.
The American Cancer Society says it combines an
unyielding passion with nearly a century of experience to save lives and
end suffering from cancer.
As a global grassroots force of more than three
million volunteers, we fight for every birthday threatened by every
cancer in every community. We save lives by helping people stay well by
preventing cancer or detecting it early; helping people get well by
being there for them during and after a cancer diagnosis; by finding
cures through investment in groundbreaking discovery; and by fighting
back by rallying lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and by rallying
communities worldwide to join the fight.
As the nations largest non-governmental investor
in cancer research, contributing about $3.4 billion, we turn what we
know about cancer into what we do. As a result, more than 11 million
people in America who have had cancer and countless more who have
avoided it will be celebrating birthdays this year. To learn more about
us or to get help, call us anytime, day or night, at 1-800-227-2345 or
visit
cancer.org.
Current ACS Guidelines on Early Detection of Cancer
Breast cancer
● Yearly mammograms are recommended starting at
age 40 and continuing for as long as a woman is in good health.
● Clinical breast exam (CBE) should be part of a
periodic health exam, about every 3 years for women in their 20s and 30s
and every year for women 40 and over.
● Women should know how their breasts normally
feel and report any breast change promptly to their health care
providers. Breast self-exam (BSE) is an option for women starting in
their 20s.
● Women at high risk (greater than 20% lifetime
risk) should get an MRI and a mammogram every year. Women at moderately
increased risk (15% to 20% lifetime risk) should talk with their doctors
about the benefits and limitations of adding MRI screening to their
yearly mammogram. Yearly MRI screening is not recommended for women
whose lifetime risk of breast cancer is less than 15%.
Prostate cancer
The American Cancer Society (ACS) does not support
routine testing for prostate cancer at this time.
ACS does believe that health care professionals
should discuss the potential benefits and limitations of prostate cancer
early detection testing with men before any testing begins. This
discussion should include an offer for testing with the
prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and digital rectal exam (DRE)
yearly, beginning at age 50, to men who are at average risk of prostate
cancer and have at least a 10-year life expectancy.
Following this discussion, those men who favor
testing should be tested. Men should actively take part in this decision
by learning about prostate cancer and the pros and cons of early
detection and treatment of prostate cancer.
This discussion should take place starting at age
45 for men at high risk of developing prostate cancer. This includes
African American men and men who have a first-degree relative (father,
brother, or son) diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age (younger
than age 65).
This discussion should take place at age 40 for men
at even higher risk (those with several first-degree relatives who had
prostate cancer at an early age).
If, after this discussion, a man asks his health
care professional to make the decision for him, he should be tested
(unless there is a specific reason not to test).
>> For updated information and recommendations for
early detection of other cancers click the link below:
Oct. 23, 2009 The American Cancer Society has
issued a statement saying it is not changing its recommendations on
cancer screening, despite a news report indicating a shift in guidance
was being made to emphasize the risk of overtreatment for breast,
prostate and other cancers. Women still should get mammograms and men
should be offered prostate cancer testing at age 50, says the ACS.