Recent Cancer Screening Changes Leave Many Confused
TUESDAY, Nov. 24 (HealthDay News) -- The world of cancer screening has been upended in the past two weeks.
Not only did the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) just raise the age at which it recommends women get their first mammogram from 40 to 50, but the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) decided that adolescents should be spared the inconvenience and possible risks of cervical cancer screening, and wait until they reach the age of 21 for such testing. Both groups also recommended screening less frequently.
Add to that the long-simmering debate on the value of PSA testing for prostate cancer and the fact that both the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American College of Radiology have condemned the new USPSTF recommendations, it's no wonder patients and even experts feel like they are suffering from a bad case of medical whiplash.
Was the timing of the announcements anything more than coincidence? Are the changes a reflection of new science, attempts to influence the current raging health-care debate or just medical business as usual?
The timing, by most accounts, was purely accidental.
"I think it's a coincidence that this [the mammogram recommendation] came out when it did, right in the middle of the health-care reform discussion. It's a good panel, one that was dedicated to getting the right answer to what should be done about this," said Dr. Robert J. Barnet, senior scholar in residence at the Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University, in Washington, D.C.
Added Dr. Jay Brooks, chairman of hematology/oncology at Ochsner Health System in Baton Rouge, La: "This is nothing new. Cancer screening guidelines have been changing as more scientific knowledge accumulates."
And much of the new knowledge does suggest that over-screening does happen, often resulting in false-positive results, which lead to more biopsies and more angst. This is true of breast, cervical, prostate and other forms of cancer, experts concur.
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