Amid national debate over the most appropriate age and frequency for breast and cervical cancer screening, ASCO emphasizes that the most important message for women is this: mammograms reduce the risk of dying from breast cancer, and Pap tests can prevent cervical cancer and thus reduce the risk of dying from cervical cancer. Women should be screened for both of these diseases.

ASCO urges all women - beginning at age 40 - to speak with their doctors about mammography to understand the benefits and potential risks, and determine what is best for them; by age 50 at the latest, all women should receive regular mammograms. ASCO also urges all women to receive regular Pap tests beginning at age 21 for cervical cancer screening, in accordance with revised guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The fact is that currently too few women are regularly screened for these cancers. More than a third of women who should be screened for breast cancer are not getting regular mammograms. In the case of cervical cancer, approximately 20 percent of women aged 18 to 64 do not receive a Pap test.

Women should be screened for both diseases, and there should be no barriers - insurance or otherwise - to getting screened beginning at age 40 for breast cancer, at age 21 for cervical cancer, or sooner if recommended by a doctor for medical reasons.

Extensive evidence demonstrates the effectiveness of these screening tools. Routine screening with mammography reduces breast cancer mortality between 15 and 30 percent depending on the age of the woman. Over the past 30 years, widespread use of the Pap test has resulted in a 50 percent decline in cervical cancer incidence in the U.S.; the majority of deaths from cervical cancer in the U.S. today are among women who are not screened or screened less frequently than recommended.

More Information

Expert Perspective from ASCO on Mammography Screening for Breast Cancer

Last Updated: November 20, 2009