I have had a mammogram and sonagram every 6 months since 1995. They were worried about a little (pencil point) calcification in my left breast. Well in 2003 and 2004 i complained of a lump in my upper left breast. All the test were negative but i knew something was wrong so I went to a surgeon in 2004 and he said i had cancer 99.9% in my left breast. He ordered a MRI and found the cancer. I was already III Stage Cancer. I had to have 4 months of chemo before he would do surgery. I was lucky the tumor shrunk 75%. I had the surgery that removed both of my breast and did 3 months of chemo and 8 weeks of radiation. They put me on arimidex for almost 3 years. I had bone scans/cat scan/pet scan every year and all that was found was some arthristis in my right hip so all was good until Nov 2007 when my back started hurting. My doctor ordered a MRI and found the cancer in my hips and spine. So for me not only did the mammograms and sonagram fail but the bone scan, cat scan and the PET scan failed for me. So ladies you know your body best and if you feel something wrong pursue it and do your homework.

I do not feel any preventive medicine is ever a waste of my time.. I feel mammography alone for many women is not adequate in detecting the early stages of breast cancer, therefore I would love to see follow up sonograms as part of the preventive plan for all women.

Hello, and sorry for the delay in the response. I am beyond nervous about insurance getting cut. My mother had breast cancer in her 50s. The tumor was so fast growing that the Dr requested a new one six months after the first one came back "normal". Her BCBS refused to pay for a second mammogram within a 12 month period. It was a scary week med insurance-wise for me. First the mammograms, then postponing cervical cancer checks….my daughter had cervical cancer at 21. And I am living temporarily in the UK and the NHS is refusing patients a liver drug that has exceptional almost perfect effective rate, but is $1K a treatment. I have a back injury and under NHS it has taken me since August to see the two specialist. But I know what we have in the US needs to be fixed…but telling me I would be too worried if I had a mammogram or a cervical biopsy is ludicrous.

very timely nancy. just had my mammo. i knew when the tech did it, she wasn’t doing a great job. came back abnormal, but the hmo called and scheduled me for a follow-up mammo and ultrasound. i never care what is recommended-i do it every year. same w/ paps. i had cryosurgery 5 years ago and everything was fine-but the one i took in june came back abnormal again. i’m very proactive-if ii don’t fight for my health, who will?

I agree with you. The day that they announced the proposed findings (which were only an analysis of costs and not a study conducted by oconologists and GYNs) my friend and manager was undergoing a double masectomy at the age of 40! I am outragged. Now the pap test recommendations: all of this confusions women and pave the way for LESS CARE FOR WOMAN. What are we: chopped meat? This is utter BS. Don’t get me started!

I get a yearly mammogram and will continue. I am shocked at the new guidelines and wonder why only women’s screenings are being changed. Seems once again an exclusivel approach to health care…in that certain groups are excluded from the availability of good care. Does this mean insurance companies will change their coverage? Just wait until that happens and someone developes breast cancer and was denied a mammorgram due to new guidelines. Can you say LAWSUIT? Can you say LEGAL PRECEDENT?

I thought the same thing about the politics. Now they are cutting back on the yearly pap smears too. I haven’t heard any cutbacks on male procedures. Interesting!

I hate getting one: so painful. But I’d never skip it. I think women need to be safer than sorry. I still don’t believe this isn’t a political cost-cutting effort. What about all those women I know whose breast cancers were caught between 40 and 50 by mammograms?

Didn’t I read somewhere that every state except Utah has laws that oblige insurance companies to cover an annual mammogram? I’d be very surprised if these laws were overturned. People are worried about the government taking over our health care, but right now, it’s insurance companies that are in charge. All the heat seems to be directed to the wrong party. An example: a friend was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. A mammogram a year ago showed some suspicious signs, but the insurance company refused to pay for an MRI. This year’s mammogram confirmed the cancerous lump. If she’d had an MRI last year, could she have saved her breast, had a lumpectomy instead of the mastectomy she now has to have?

Anya: Does talk of changing the guidelines make you nervous that fewer women under 40 will be able to get insurance coverage for mammograms if they choose to undergo the testing?