The American Cancer Society made big changes to its mammogram guidelines for the first time in 30 years yesterday.
According to their announcement in the medical journal, JAMA, the ACS now recommends that women can wait longer to get their first annual mammogram—bumping the age from 40 to 45.
They also said that if women hit the age of 55 and have had clear results, they can dial back their mammograms to once every two years.
It’s important to keep in mind that these guidelines are for women with an average risk of breast cancer. If you are at a higher risk (Someone in your family has had breast cancer before, especially at a young age or you have the gene BRCA1 or BRCA2) you should get screened more frequently. Talk to your doctor and decide what’s right for you.
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