Ellyn Davidson addresses confusion and dangers of guidelines at Skyline Club event
[Birmingham, MI] – Ellyn Davidson, a partner at Brogan & Partners Convergence Marketing and breast cancer survivor is not happy about the sweeping changes in the newly proposed mammogram screening guidelines, and will discuss the controversy at the Greater Detroit Area Health Council's Coffee & Controversy event starting at 7:30 a.m. on January 12, 2010 at the Skyline Club in Southfield.
The new guidelines are proposed by the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force, which is a group of health experts convened by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. According to the new guidelines, routine screening of average-risk women should begin at 50, instead of the current age of 40, and end at age 74; women should get screening mammograms every two years instead of each year; and breast self-exams have little value, based on results from several large studies. The American Cancer Society disagrees with the proposed new recommendations, and continues to stand behind the current guidelines of screenings every year starting at age 40.
"We've spent 25 years educating women on the importance of early breast cancer detection, self breast exams and routine mammograms beginning at age 40," said Davidson. "As a breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer at age 36, if I'd followed these guidelines I might not be here to talk to you today."
Other speakers at the event will include Sharon Helmer, M.D., Clinical Service Chief of the Karmanos Cancer Center Imaging Department and Medical Director of Karmanos Breast Imaging, and Zeina Nahleh, M.D., Leader of the Breast Multidisciplinary Team at the Karmanos Cancer Center. The event is $35 or GDAHC Members, and $50 for non-members, and is sponsored by the Karmanos Cancer Center. To register, visit www.gdahc.org.
