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Thanks - this nicely lays out that yes, mammography itself appears to cause some breast cancers but prevents 52 deaths for every one caused. It also supports the reasoning for some guidelines stating that after the age of 50, mammos can drop to every other year rather than annually - reducing exposure to radiation.
I'm in my mid-40's and just decided to quit going to the gyno. I've been married forever, don't need birth control, and I am certainly past my childbearing years. I'm not declared "at risk" for any female health issues either.
I don't get the mammo every year either although my insurance pays for it. I've had a few already which were totally normal. I'll go every couple years. Again, I don't advise this for everyone, but I am not at risk and I'm in excellent health. However, I wold certainly get one if something was off.
I do see my primary care doc every year for a physical and any boosters I may need.
Here's my story: At 39, I found a small lump in my breast, went in for a mammogram/ultrasound/biopsy, and it was cancer. I had a lumpectomy. In retrospect, I should have had a mastectomy, but we did not know at that time that I have a cancer-predisposing genetic condition.
I had never had a mammogram, as I was still six months away from 40, when screening starts. Nevertheless, if I hadn't found the lump (and every doctor said I was very lucky to have noticed it), my first mammogram would have picked it up, and it would likely still have been small and treatable. So I encourage people to get mammograms.
After the lumpectomy, I was referred for alternating mammograms & MRIs every six months. It seemed excessive, but six years later, not long after we'd found out about my bad genes, an MRI found a second breast cancer which was unrelated to the first one--totally different type, and in a different place. But it was also small and curable, and thank goodness I was getting the screening.
Now I've had a double mastectomy, so no more mammograms.
My dad was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 76. He had never had a colonoscopy, and his GP was weirdly reluctant to refer him for one even after my dad described the symptoms ("It's just hemorrhoids.") Fortunately my dad insisted, and the cancer was relatively small and had only spread to one lymph node. He had surgery and chemo, the cancer never recurred, and he died of old age at 94. But not without insisting that he have another colonoscopy every 5 years. He had his last one at 91!
So, I turned 50 this year and went in for my first colonoscopy partly because of my age and also because I am considered high risk. It was clean as a whistle, but I'll probably go again in five years (recommended for me due to family history). Colon cancer is actually preventable, so why not?
I get pap smears only every three years, but as a HPV-negative older woman I'm not worried about cervical cancer.
Thanks - this nicely lays out that yes, mammography itself appears to cause some breast cancers but prevents 52 deaths for every one caused. It also supports the reasoning for some guidelines stating that after the age of 50, mammos can drop to every other year rather than annually - reducing exposure to radiation.
It's tough for me to fathom have squeezing our breasts to smitherines doesn't cause harm!!!!
If I was really gunhoe on these tests, I'd do thermography. No squeezing there.
Just had a mammogram..... breasts weren't squeezed to smithereens. Still the fun bubblies DH enjoys.
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Oh have they developed new machines that don't smash the breasts?
None of them ever went to the setting of "smithereens."
Though I have to say this one DID seem less.
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Many, many years ago when I had a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, I had all the hopistal staff coming in to see me. She should have been in a COMA by all their standards.
One Intern from Jamaica came to see me. He turned around to all the other doctors and said to them, "The mind is the the most powerful medicine there is".
Forty years later, I will never forget him. He ALONE went out of his way to help me in any way he could. The rest of the staff SHUNNED me because I refused to back down to their "expertise".
Yeah, Jamin, you and I are still alive and kickin in our old age. No? We may have different paths achieving the same end, but it is not what mainstream calls for.
They need to SILENCE us so others don't get any contrary views?
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