October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a timely reminder for women to prioritize their breast health and schedule their next mammogram.
Throughout adulthood, women are encouraged to regularly perform self-exams, stay alert to potential symptoms and undergo routine mammograms to help detect breast cancer early. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends regular screenings through age 74.
However, updated guidelines recommend that women continue these screenings well into their later years.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
“There’s no single age for everyone to stop getting these screenings,” Maria Rivera, D.O., MBA and Humana’s regional vice president of health services for Atlanta told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It depends on the overall women’s health, which can be complex, multifactorial and influenced by many different elements.”
Although many women might believe their risk of breast cancer decreases with age, data from the American Cancer Society shows that women in their 70s actually face the highest risk of diagnosis. This concerning trend comes from multiple factors, including age-related biological changes, family history and lifetime exposure to various risk factors.
It also points to a lack of timely diagnosis for women in their 70s. This issue is uniquely pertinent in Georgia, where incidents of breast cancer are lower than the national average at 1%, but the mortality rate sits at 7%.
Women in their 70s and beyond can take proactive steps to protect against breast cancer, especially when it comes to prevention and timely treatment of symptoms.
“That’s why it’s important for them to have these conversations with their physicians about what types of screenings are appropriate for their specific and unique clinical scenario,” Rivera suggested.
How to protect your breast health
As you age, there are many facets to maintaining your health, but regular checkups remain imperative.
“Primary care is going to be the foundation,” Rivera said. “Having regular checkups are going to be critical to maintaining long-term wellness and for them to stay as independent as possible.”
Beyond routine doctor visits, older women are encouraged to perform regular self-exams — ideally, once a month, which is best done in the shower.
If you have a family history of breast cancer, it’s important to continue to get mammograms into your later years. Be sure your primary care doctor is aware, as this may warrant ongoing screenings beyond the standard recommendations.
“About 5 to 10% of breast cancer incidence is going to be hereditary,” Rivera explained.
As you age, tailoring your health care becomes increasingly important, because your health needs change over time. For some older adults, colon cancer screenings may no longer be necessary, but for others, they become even more critical.
“It’s a complex decision, but it is an important one, and screening has value,” Rivera said. “I think that emphasizing and educating the patients on that value is a step in the right direction.”
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