Opinion: A widely used guideline said I didn’t need a mammogram. It was wrong
I have advanced breast cancer today partly because the guidelines for screening women in my age range are one hot mess of controversy.
Are my breast cancer and I on the wrong side of statistics, or just caught in the confusing and potentially devastating conflict between medical societies about when women should start breast-cancer screening?
One morning more than a year ago, it didn’t seem like either. As both of my kids cuddled in bed with my husband and me, I started the conversation I’d been dreading.
“Remember when I went to the doctor a few weeks ago?” I reminded my children. “Well, it turns out they found a bump in my boob. If it stays, it won’t be good for me. So we have to take it out.”
“What is it?” my 7-year-old son asked.
Because his grandfather had recently died, I was afraid to use the word
