
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 20, 1993                   TAG: 9310200181
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

MAMMOGRAM STANDARDS MAY BE SCALED BACK

In an anticipated but controversial move, the National Cancer Institute is proposing to scale back its guidelines for mammography, no longer recommending that all women in their 40s routinely get the X-ray test for breast cancer.

In the proposed revision, to be presented today to a board of independent scientists for review, NCI no longer recommends that women ages 40-49 get a mammogram every one to two years. Instead, they should "discuss the appropriateness of a screening mammogram individually with their physicians, taking into account individual risk factors," and continue to get a physical breast exam each year.

The revision also recommends that women 50 and older get a mammogram every one to two years along with a clinical breast exam yearly; the current guidelines call for a mammogram every year for women 50 and older. Women ages 70 and older should be screened unless their health status indicates otherwise, the proposed guidelines state. - Newsday

by CNB