Angela Gucwa on the Importance of Mammograms

Angela Gucwa is a specialist in breast procedures with a medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. As such, Angela Gucwa places a significant emphasis on mammograms as a key preventative procedure for early detection of breast cancer. Recently, mammogram guidelines have changed. Angela Gucwa reviews the new rules here:

Beginning Screening: Angela Gucwa recommends that all women begin screening for breast cancer by having regular mammograms by the time they reach age fifty. For those who have a family history of breast cancer, screenings should begin by age forty. Age and family history are the two biggest risk factors for breast cancer.

Routine Screening: When Angela Gucwa says that women should receive regular or routine mammograms, she means that they should be spaced so that exams occur every two years. Unless there is a significant family history, yearly screenings are not necessary, says Angela Gucwa.

An End to Screening: If breast cancer is not detected by age 74, routine screenings can be discontinued. Breast cancer is unlikely to develop if it has not been detected by that point in time, explains Angela Gucwa. However, women may still continue to be screened after age 74. This can be decided in consultation with your doctor.

Beware Early Detection: One reason screening guidelines have changed recently, says Angela Gucwa, is that more and more women are having cancer detected early, yet the number of late detection cases has not decreased. Angela Gucwa explains that these findings suggest that many of those early diagnoses might never have affected women’s health.