First Person Singular by Wendy Braitman

filed in Daily Life

To Squeeze Or Not: 2009 Mammogram Debate

November 20, 2009 ⋅  Email This Post ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

This has been a noisy week for women’s health. Just as we were getting revved up to battle against the horrific Stupak Amendment, two nonpartisan panels released recommendations suggesting that women would be better served by having fewer pap smears and mammograms than previously advised. Sounds GREAT to me. I have an annual mammogram scheduled for next month, but now, I’m thinking about canceling it. I’ll consult with my levelheaded gynecologist first, but not till after Thanksgiving, when her phone lines aren’t so jammed.

I’ve read a lot of pushback since these recommendations were announced, the most pathetic of which has come from politicians. I’m sorry, but I do not take kindly to agenda-driven men (with an agenda other than my well-being) telling me what to do about my body. But I share other women’s anxiety. For years, we’ve been led to believe that early detection is the holy grail. Please check out Gail Collins’ really smart column, The Breast Brouhaha in the New York Times. Sanity is so reassuring.

Update: My gynecologist is suggesting to all her patients to keep getting mammograms with the same frequency as before.

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