Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Charles W. Boustany, Jr., MD, R-Southwest Louisiana, today raised concerns about recommendations for breast cancer screening released by a government task force.

“Breast cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer death among women,” said Boustany.  “The USPSTF admits that screening below the recommended age of 50 still saves lives.  As federally funded comparative-effective research such as this becomes more widely available, patient safeguards are needed to ensure that government-run programs don’t misuse this data to deprive individuals of medically-necessary care due to cost.  Medical decisions need to be made by patients and their doctors.  Today’s announcement highlights the need to strengthen the doctor-patient relationship for women and all Americans.”

Boustany’s comments followed the release of recommendations by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) that women between the age of 40 and 50 years old might not need a yearly mammogram.  The task force made the suggestion only for those women who have no risk factors for cancer other than age.

The American Cancer Society reiterated its call for yearly mammograms for all women age 40 and older after the USPSTF made their announcement.

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