Viewpoints: New front opens in abortion battle Nov 22, 2009
Women and their advocates are highly motivated and well-organized, as evidenced by the uproar over new guidelines for mammograms. But unlike the advocates for breast cancer treatment, proponents of reproductive rights battle a problem of perception. (Sacramento Bee -- Opinion)
COLUMN: Task force puts boobs front and center for public conversation Nov 22, 2009
This collection of government boobs oh, somebody stop me says that most women don t need mammograms in their 40s and instead should get one every two years starting at age 50. For those who don t know, the common recommendation for quite some time has been that at age 40, women start getting mammograms each year ... On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said women should continue getting mammograms starting at age 40. (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
Open Forum: No misrepresentation on library budget Nov 22, 2009
In Tuesday's Dispatch, an article about mammograms and breast self-exams stated "a government task force (described as a government panel of doctors and scientists) said breast self-exams do no good and women shouldn't be taught to do them." The panel also states that mammograms should only be done every two years. The American Cancer Society recommends annual mammograms. (Brainerd Daily Dispatch)
GOP: Health Test Guidelines Step Toward Rationing Nov 22, 2009
WASHINGTON -- Republicans are seizing on this week's recommendations for fewer pap smears and mammograms to fuel concern about government-rationed medical care _ and to try to chip away support by women for President Barack Obama's proposed health care overhaul ... And besides, they said, the recommendations, especially one that women start mammograms at 50 rather than 40, were deeply flawed ... One Democrat wasn't taking chances on whether the recommendations had jeopardized access to... (Newsmax)
Health providers, survivors dispute panels mammogram recommendation Nov 22, 2009
Health providers, survivors dispute panels mammogram recommendation. Keokuk Area Hospital Radiologist Dr. Arthur Mardis takes a close look at a mammogram image in the lab ... Mardis recommends that women who are 40 and older have annual mammograms, get annual clinical screenings and do breast self-examination to detect breast cancer at its early stages. (Keokuk Daily Gate City, IO)
Cancer screenings under scrutiny Nov 22, 2009
Federal advisory panel heavily criticized after recommending delay in routine mammograms ... A federal advisory board made a controversial recommendation that women begin routine mammograms at age 50, rather than at 40. (CNN)
Could Mammograms, Pap Smears Kill Reform? Nov 22, 2009
Could Mammogram Brouhaha Stymie Health Care Reform ... Could Mammogram Brouhaha Stymie Health Care Reform ... A new controversy over mammograms could figure big as the health care bill reaches the Senate. (ABC News)
Early screening still saves lives Nov 22, 2009
So it stunned many doctors and breast cancer survivors this week when the US Preventive Services Task Force, a panel of health care experts appointed by the Department of Health and Human Services, upended its previous advice by recommending that most women begin getting routine mammograms at age 50, rather than 40 ... And the task force doesn t categorically instruct women not to get mammograms in their 40s ... But some oncologists worry that many women in their 40s will elect not to get... (Boston Globe)
As health bill vote nears, foes 00004000hit hard Nov 22, 2009
Mammogram guideline adds spark to debate ... Meanwhile, the surprise recommendation this week by a quasi-government panel that women should have fewer mammograms injected a volatile issue into the health debate ... Beck jokingly referred to the mammogram recommendations as "good news for the government" because it would reduce "the expense of those pesky people.". (Albany Times Union)
Late TV listings Nov 22, 2009
Topics: health care debate; the president s imminent decision about troops in Afghanistan and his trip last week to Asia; the controversy over a panel s recommendation about mammograms; Sarah Palin s Going Rogue road trip. Guests: Senators Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and Ben Nelson of Nebraska; Representatives Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. (Boston Globe)
Scan could cut breast removal ops Nov 22, 2009
Annual mammograms are offered to women with these gene mutations to allow early identification and treatment of tumours ... Lead researcher Professor Martin Leach said: "This study demonstrates that MRI screening is almost twice as sensitive as traditional X-ray mammography in identifying tumours in women of this age group at high genetic risk. It is important to remember that mammograms are effective in screening the general population Liz Carroll "As this study was carried out on a countrywide... (BBC News)
New Cancer Guidelines Say to Start Mammograms at 50, Not 40 Nov 22, 2009
For most of the past two decades, the cancer society has been recommending annual mammograms beginning at 40 ... The guidelines are for the general population, not those at high risk of breast cancer because of family history or gene mutations that would justify having mammograms sooner or more often ... Most women in their 40s should not routinely get mammograms. (Fox News)
Letters for Friday, November 20, 2009 Nov 22, 2009
KiniKauai wrote on Nov 20, 2009 6:34 AM:" Not only are our elected legislators in Washington, D.C. NOT listening to our concerns, they are voting party lines regardless of the topic of the legislation. After several letters to each, and receiving form letter responses full of glittering generalities and not one fact, I am finished with all of them. As for how to pay for the new healthcare, it has already begun. With the money saved by not doing early breast cancer screenings and mammograms, by... (Lihue Garden Island, HA)
Another View: Lets stick with mammograms Nov 22, 2009
Another View: Lets stick with mammograms / HanfordSentinel ... Another View: Lets stick with mammograms ... The task force announced that it would no longer recommend routine mammograms for women between the ages of 40 and 49, a group that accounts for about one out of six breast cancers. (Hanford Sentinal, CA)
McCain takes up 'death panel' charge on floor Nov 22, 2009
McCain assailed a recent recommendation by a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services panel that women receive regular mammograms once they reach 50 years of age, instead of the traditional 40. McCain used that to revive a criticism of the Democratic-written healthcare bill that Palin raised over the summer, that advisory boards could create polices that would make them become "death panels.". (TheHill.com)
Tiba Nu owner Nuhad Khoury shares 25 years worth of lessons Nov 22, 2009
Columbia HCA & Tiba partnered in l996 to provide on-site mammogram screenings at Tiba when we were located at The Mall at Green Hills ... I think we were ahead of our time with the HCA mammogram screenings. (Nashville Business Journal, TN)
GOP Points to Cancer Recs, Calls It 'Rationing' Nov 22, 2009
The first study released by a quasi-government panel called The United States Preventive Services Task Force said that women no longer need to get annual mammograms to detect breast cancer until they are over the age of 50. The second report came out Friday, issued by a different group, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. (ABC News)
MRI ordered, payment denied: Hampton woman an example of health care debate Nov 22, 2009
"Hayden's case began more than a year ago with the abnormal mammogram reading. An MRI was recommended in a joint consultation with her doctor and radiology specialist (Hayden's doctor declined requests to be interviewed for this story) and it was set up and taken at Portsmouth Regional Hospital.Hayden, who began taking regular mammograms in her early 30s, in part because of her mother's breast cancer, did not know her policy required preapproval and assumed it was all right because her primary... (Seacoast New Hampshire)
Rants and raves Nov 21, 2009
TO ALL OF YOU who are so anxious for the government to be in charge of our health care, I refer you to the recent government task force recommendations on mammograms and breast exams, which recommended that mammograms be delayed until after age 50 and self-examinations be eliminated. Welcome to the world of government-run health care. (The Augusta Chronicle)
New reports on cancer tests complicate health debate Nov 21, 2009
First mammograms and now pap smears ... Mammograms need not be given routinely until after age 50, the advisory group said ... But challenges to established practices like pap smears and mammograms are drawing anger from health care professionals and patients alike, and posing political problems for proponents of health reform. (The Palm Beach Post)
Pap Smears Should Start at Age 21 Nov 21, 2009
The change comes amid a separate debate over when regular mammograms to detect breast cancer should begin. The timing of the Pap guidelines is coincidence, said ACOG, which began reviewing its recommendations in late 2007 and published the update Friday in the journal Obstetrics ology. (Newsmax)
Conflicting Mammogram Advice May Cause Confusion Nov 21, 2009
For them, waiting to get their first mammogram could have meant it was too late ... Reacting toapanel's recommendationnot to start routine mammogramsuntil age 50, survivorTanya Causeyexpressed frustration ... "When you look at these young women, they have small children and you're saving their life because they got t 00002342 hat first mammogram," Luhrs said. (13WMAZ.com, GA)
Letters for Friday, November 20, 2009 Nov 21, 2009
KiniKauai wrote on Nov 20, 2009 6:34 AM:" Not only are our elected legislators in Washington, D.C. NOT listening to our concerns, they are voting party lines regardless of the topic of the legislation. After several letters to each, and receiving form letter responses full of glittering generalities and not one fact, I am finished with all of them. As for how to pay for the new healthcare, it has already begun. With the money saved by not doing early breast cancer screenings and mammograms, by... (Lihue Garden Island, HA)
GOP seizes mammogram issue Nov 21, 2009
WASHINGTON - Republicans are seizing on this week's recommendations for fewer Pap smears and mammograms to fuel concern about government-rationed medical care - and to try to chip away support by women for President Barack Obama's proposed health-care overhaul ... And besides, they said, the recommendations, especially one that women start mammograms at 50 rather than 40, were deeply flawed ... One Democrat wasn't taking chances on whether the recommendations had jeopardized access to affordable... (AZCentral -- News)
New cancer guidelines called appalling Nov 21, 2009
The X-ray results from a mammogram ... Currently the American Cancer Society, and most of the American medical community, recommend women begin getting regular mammograms at age 40 ... The new recommendations advocate mammograms be put off until age 50, unless family history or other risk factors indicate earlier detection efforts. (Roanoke Rapids Daily Herald, NC)
Let women keep their abortion coverage Nov 21, 2009
Women and their advocates are highly motivated and well-organized, as evidenced by the uproar over new guidelines for mammograms. But unlike the advocates for breast cancer treatment, proponents of reproductive rights battle a problem of perception. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Insider: This and that Nov 21, 2009
The American Cancer Society has long recommended that women receive yearly mammograms beginning at age 40 ... Proponents of the new recommendations say that early mammograms may actually cause more problems than they catch and that the majority of benefits from mammograms begin at age 50 ... They site the potential harm from yearly mammograms including false-positive tests, unnecessary biopsies and treatment for cancers that would never have harmed them. (Kingston Mariner, MA)
Show to end in 2011 Nov 21, 2009
Republicans are seizing on this week's recommendations for fewer Pap smears and mammograms to fuel concern about government-rationed medical care and to try to chip away support by women for President Barack Obama's proposed health care overhaul. 4:36 a.m.. (The Palm Beach Post)
Another View: Lets stick with mammograms Nov 21, 2009
Another View: Lets stick with mammograms / HanfordSentinel ... Another View: Lets stick with mammograms ... The task force announced that it would no longer recommend routine mammograms for women between the ages of 40 and 49, a group that accounts for about one out of six breast cancers. (Hanford Sentinal, CA)
•New mammogram guidelines not worth risking one's life Nov 21, 2009
New mammogram guidelines not worth risking one's life ... New mammogram guidelines not worth risking one's life ... The news that has been weighing on my mind the most is a government panel's recommendation that women younger than 50 do not need regular mammograms unless they are considered a high risk for breast cancer. (The Daily Journal)
The Mammogram Panic Nov 21, 2009
Why women are panicking over the advice to delay mammogram and pap smears ... I've been trying to understand the flap this week over the recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Task Forceto delay routine mammograms to age 50 for most women. (Slate)
Mammogram debate and a false economy Nov 21, 2009
Yet I know enough to look askance at advice that only women 50 and older get mammograms every two years and those in their 40s skip the test altogether ... Yet I know enough to look askance at advice that only women 50 and older get mammograms every two years and those in their 40s skip the test altogether ... Yet I know enough to look askance at advice that only women 50 and older get mammograms every two years and those in their 40s skip the test altogether. (Juneau Empire)
Opening the Screening Door Nov 21, 2009
Now ACOG recommendations for less frequent pap smears on the heels of the HHS recommendations on mammograms that got breast cancer advocates up in arms ... In the UK, no mammograms until age 50, and as for pap smears here's CPR's vignette with Katie Brickell who asked Britain's National Health Service for a pap smear at 19, was told to come back at 20, came back and was told the minimum age had been changed to 25, and then she contracted cervical cancer. (Slate)
COLUMN: Task force puts boobs front and center for public conversation Nov 21, 2009
This collection of government boobs oh, somebody stop me says that most women don t need mammograms in their 40s and instead should get one every two years starting at age 50. For those who don t know, the common recommendation for quite some time has been that at age 40, women start getting mammograms each year ... On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said women should continue getting mammograms starting at age 40. (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
Cervical Cancer Guidelines Nov 21, 2009
After a week of uproar over the controversial recommendations for less mammogram screenings for women, doctors say they will have to wait and see how the public reacts to the new pap smear guidelines. "This is not a radical change in screening practices. This is something that's been coming gradually since the 1980s," said Dr. Alan G. Waxman, who helped write the new guidelines. (ABC News)
New Pap test guidelines for women Nov 21, 2009
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The new mammogram recommendations out earlier this week caused quite an uproar ... And, Saslow added, this is completely different from the new, hotly debated mammogram recommendations ... "Getting an annual Pap test is the equivalent to getting a mammogram every four months. Breast cancer on average is growing at a point where, if you get a mammogram every two years, you will miss a lot of deadly cancers that you would have caught if you're having them every year. This is... (CNN)
Latest health news » Nov 21, 2009
The latest advice from the major medical groups for routine screening primarily for people who don't have a family history of a particular cancer or other risk factors:Breast cancer: American Cancer Society: Mammograms yearly beginning at age 40; breast exam by doctor at least every three years in 20s and 30s, annually after 40; breast self-exam an option. Two days before shipping off to war, Marine Pfc. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Health)
Sandy Springs: Tie a pink ribbon for me on Thursday Nov 21, 2009
What I m not thankful for is the recent recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task force that mammograms shouldn t be routine until age 50. That said, I am thankful for my son s mom and my ex-wife Shelia Osterman. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Health providers, survivors dispute panels mammogram recommendation Nov 21, 2009
Health providers, survivors dispute panels mammogram recommendation. Keokuk Area Hospital Radiologist Dr. Arthur Mardis takes a close look at a mammogram image in the lab ... Mardis recommends that women who are 40 and older have annual mammograms, get annual clinical screenings and do breast self-examination to detect breast cancer at its early stages. (Keokuk Daily Gate City, IO)
Clearing up cancer screening confusion Nov 21, 2009
American Cancer Society: Mammograms yearly beginning at age 40; breast exam by doctor at least every three years in 20s and 30s, annually after 40; breast self-exam an option. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists: Mammograms every 1-2 years for women in their 40s; annual mammograms age 50 and older; breast exam by a doctor annually from age 19; breast self-exam can be recommended ... U.S. Preventive Services Task Force: Mammograms every two years for women ages 50 to 74, after 75... (MSNBC -- Health)
Your views: Letters to the editor Nov 21, 2009
New mammogram guidelines criticized ... My daughters have been getting mammograms every year since they were 40 because Im a two-time breast cancer survivor, which puts them at risk. (Florida Today)
SIRIUS XM to Broadcast 'Doctor Radio Reports: What Every Woman Needs To Know About Mammograms' Nov 21, 2009
SIRIUS XM to Broadcast 'Doctor Radio Reports: What Every Woman Needs To Know About Mammograms ... NEW YORK, Nov. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SIRIUS XM Radio (Nasdaq: - ) today announced that it will broadcast Doctor Radio Reports: What Every Women Needs to Know About Mammograms, an in-depth special hosted by veteran journalist Perri Peltz ... Doctor Radio Reports: What Every Woman Needs to Know About Mammograms will air November 21 live at 10:00 am ET on Doctor Radio, SIRIUS channel 114 and XM... (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Mammogram Guidelines: What You Need to Know Nov 21, 2009
Blanca Rubio performs a mammogram on a 65-year-old patient at Evanston Hospital in Evanston, Ill ... Over the past two decades, annual mammograms for women over 40 had become a standard of preventive care in the U.S. right up there with daily exercise, quitting smoking and getting a flu shot ... The 47-year-old has no family history of breast cancer but has been dutifully getting an annual mammogram for the past seven years in order to reduce her risk of dying from the disease. (Time.com)
Another view: A new mammogram Rx Nov 21, 2009
This week, the federal Preventive Services Task Force muddied the waters on breast cancer screening with its new guidelines: Most women should have a mammogram every two years, beginning at age 50 ... For your average 40-something woman, the take-home message from the task force is that routine mammograms are probably not necessary and possibly harmful, though not very ... Many women just don't get around to scheduling that mammogram as often as their doctor prescribes. (Montana Standard, MT)
Click to read:Change Ahead for Cervical Cancer Detection Nov 21, 2009
The new mammogram recommendations aren't just getting criticism from women around the country - they're getting attacked by the government too ... The change in recommendations for mammogram screening came from the USPSTF. The USPSTF is a federal advisory panel of public health experts, none of which are directly involved in breast cancer care ... So, no paps, no mammograms, but by golly anyone want an abortion. (CBS News)
ON THE RECORD: Notable quotes of the week Nov 21, 2009
Mammograms have always been an important life-saving tool in the fight against breast cancer and they still are today. Keep doing what you've been doing for years. (Albany Times Union)
End-Of-Year Health Benefits Nov 21, 2009
says make sure you aren't missing out on the free stuff and yearly preventive checkups and tests such as physicals, GYN exams, mammogram and postrate screenings that require small or no co-payment. Don't let the money in your flexible spending account go to waste. (W-USA News, DC)
Elisabeth Hasselbeck on 'Hannity' Nov 21, 2009
HANNITY: You had an opportunity to ask Barack Obama one of the toughest questions he got in the campaign and we discussed it with her last night, so we'll come back and we'll also ask you about this mammogram issue involving women in the health care bill and the government. (COMMERCIAL BREAK). (Fox News)
Women's Health Care Under Attack? Nov 21, 2009
Days after a government task force radically changed its guidelines for using mammograms to screen for breast cancer, another critical preventive test Pap smears is under the microscope, heightening concern that both might be a first step down a slippery slope toward health care rationing ... The recommendation goes against the American Cancer Society s long-held position that women receive their first mammogram by the age of 40 and follow up with yearly mammograms until the age of 74. (Fox News)
New pap test guidelines: start later, have fewer Nov 21, 2009
Those guidelines suggest that the average woman need not have a mammogram to screen for breast cancer until age 50 and, after that, should have the test every other year rather than annually. Those suggested changes stirred a firestorm of debate. (FOX19.com, OH)
Report: 20-somethings can go 2000020C5 years between Paps Nov 20, 2009
The change by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists comes amid a completely separate debate over when regular mammograms to detect breast cancer should begin. The timing of the Pap guidelines is coincidence, said ACOG, which began reviewing its recommendations in late 2007 and published the update Friday in the journal Obstetrics ology. (Albany Times Union)
What Should Women Do About The Mammogram Guidelines? Nov 20, 2009
What Should Women Do About The Mammogram Guidelines ... Las Vegas NowWhat Should Women Do About The Mammogram Guidelines ... What Should Women Do About The Mammogram Guidelines. (KLAS-TV.com, NV)
'Ignore Them': Which Hospitals Are Skipping New Mammogram Rules? Nov 20, 2009
Which Hospitals Are Ignoring New Mammogram Rules - ABC News ... Which Hospitals Are Ignoring New Mammogram Rules ... "We will maintain our recommendations that routine screening for women at average risk for cancer occurs annually from 40 years of age through 80, when it can be altered at that point... please continue to schedule your mammograms annually, check your breasts, and let your physician know when changes occur.". (ABC News)
Bayh to support first procedural vote on healthcare Nov 20, 2009
You're a phony Bayh and now we know you caved to Reid and support a govt takeover of our health care and 40-year-old women not getting mammograms. You are no centrist and we will vote you out of office. (TheHill.com)
New guidelines for mammograms Nov 20, 2009
A government task force said Monday that most women don t need mammograms in their 40s and should get one every two years starting at 50 a stunning reversal and a break with the American Cancer Society s long-standing position ... For most of the past two decades, the American Cancer Society has been recommending annual mammograms beginning at 40, and it reiterated that position on Monday ... The death rate is not going down because of the earlier mammograms. (Chippewa Falls Chippewa Herald, WI)
Government-run health care is a bad idea Nov 20, 2009
sparky595 wrote on Nov 19, 2009 6:42 AM:" Healthcare rationing is already starting. Instead of mammogram tests starting at age 40, they have now changed that to age 50."At least 40 percent of the lives saved by mammographic screening are of women aged 40-49. "Are they changing the guidelines to save lives, or money?http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE5AF5OS20091116 ". (Lodi News Sentinel, CA)
A mammogram saved my life Nov 20, 2009
SPEAKING OUT Dr. John Turner, of Evangelical Community Hospitals Thyra M. Humphreys Center for Breast Health, and Nancy White, a patient at the center, spoke out against the new mammogram guidelines and advocated mammograms for women ages 40 to 49. Turner identified Whites cancer through a mammogram when she was 48 ... Published: Thursday, November 19, 2009 10:13 AM CST LEWISBURG When Nancy White, 49, heard about the new guidelines for women regarding mammograms and self breast exams... (Milton Standard Journal, PA)
COLUMN: Task force puts boobs front and center for public conversation Nov 20, 2009
This collection of government boobs oh, somebody stop me says that most women don t need mammograms in their 40s and instead should get one every two years starting at age 50. For those who don t know, the common recommendation for quite some time has been that at age 40, women start getting mammograms each year ... On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said women should continue getting mammograms starting at age 40. (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
A look inside the task force Nov 20, 2009
Who decides about mammograms ... Who decides about mammograms ... The task force, a federal advisory board, said this week that women should not begin routine mammograms until age 50, contradicting the well-established advice that women 40 and older should be screened. (CNN)
Group: Pap tests should start at age 21 Nov 20, 2009
The task force recommended that women begin mammograms at age 50, not 40, and decrease the frequency thereafter. Both the mammography and Pap test guidelines are part of a broader, evidence-based shift toward less screening, says Dr. Karen Soren, the director of adolescent health services at Columbia University Medical Center, in New York City. (CNN)
'I want my mammograms!' Nov 20, 2009
I want my mammograms ... I want my mammograms ... Routine mammograms for women in 40s not recommended by task force's new guidelines. (CNN)
Mammograms & Money Nov 20, 2009
Mammograms: Is Reaction About Money ... Mammograms: Is It About Money ... In addition, while there is no question that mammograms save lives, there is a very real debate about the cost incurred in screening all women every year between the ages of 40 and 50. (ABC News -- Business)
Olivia Newton-John Nov 20, 2009
In an interview with ABC News Radio, Newton-John said she does not agree with the new that women not have routine mammograms while they are in their forties ... The controversial new guidelines, released Monday by the , recommend against routine mammograms for women age 40 to 49, and they further suggest that women over 50 only have mammograms once every two years. (ABC News -- Business)
74 comments Nov 20, 2009
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) yesterday announced its recommendation that women between the age of 40 and 50 years old, whose only risk factor is age, skip that yearly mammogram ... Otis W. Brawley, M.D., chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society reiterated his organizations recommendations for yearly mammograms for all women age 40 and over, right after the USPSTF guidelines were released. (Human Events Online)
Mammography Debate Puzzles Many Nov 20, 2009
Obama Administration Distances Itself from Task Force Finding; Sebelius Says Medicare, Medicaid Will Pay for Mammograms ... (CBS) Some women like 47-year-old Sharon Whitmore, a breast cancer survivor, credit mammograms with saving their lives ... "No coverage changes will be coming, Medicare will continue to pay for mammograms. Medicaid will continue to pay for mammograms," Sebelius said. (CBS News)
