Hundreds of thousands of cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in women in the United States each year, including an estimated 316,950 cases in 2025. A new set of guidelines has been issued by the American College of Physicians (ACP), and these guidelines indicate that some middle-aged women shouldn’t automatically receive regular mammograms. Women aged 40-49 who are at average risk of breast cancer should discuss with their doctors the benefits and disadvantages of screening. Following shared decision making, if a female in this age group prefers to get screened, she should have a mammogram every two years. Women aged 50-74 who show no symptoms and are deemed at average risk for breast cancer should receive a mammogram every other year. Women aged 75 and older with no symptoms and at average risk of breast cancer should consider halting mammograms because of the uncertainty surrounding the benefits and because of the harms of screening. In women over 75, research has shown that screenings are over diagnosed. These are often slow-growing tumors that would never have caused symptoms or death in the patient’s lifetime. In addition, approximately 200 out of 1,000 women over 75 will experience a false positive, resulting unnecessary, stressful follow-up tests and biopsies. These procedures can be painful and physical demanding, while treatments like surgery and radiation can lead to reduced quality of life. For many women over 75, mammograms don’t significantly extend life expectancy. Finally, older women often have other, more pressing health concerns, and finding a slow-growing cancer can lead to treatments that are more dangerous than the cancer itself.
