CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Federal Health Task Force announced on Tuesday that all women aged 40 are recommended to get a breast cancer screening every other year.
"If they’re going to do every other year that defeats the purpose of early detection. If you’re going to get screened, you need to do it every year,” Missie Trejo said.
Trejo was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2018.
After a tough battle, she now advocates for other women to get checked regularly for breast cancer.
“We think it’s an older person’s problem. It’s not," Trejo said. "This is hitting younger woman and men. Cancer is out there, and it does not discriminate and for insurances to catch up to the process and the age guidelines that’s where we’re going to have to fight.”
The goal is to catch cancers earlier when they’re easier to treat and, often, still curable with procedures like surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
Radiology Associates works to educate the community on the importance of getting checked. Jennie Anthony explained the importance of early detection.
“With the new technology we can find breast cancer as early as stage 0 which is like the tip of a pin. We know that the longer you wait the lower the survival rate,” Jeannie Anthony said.
Radiology Associates follows different guidelines. Expecting woman to get a screening mammogram every year.
Trejo said she wants to see even younger woman taking care of themselves.
This is a big change considering the United States Preventive Services Task Force was recommending women back in 2016 to get mammograms every other year starting at 50-years-old.
“This should be preventative maintenance. Mammograms should be on insurances as early as 18,” Trejo said.
