Rep. Janet Cruz Files HB925 -- Breast Cancer Early Detection & Treatment

State Representative Janet Cruz (D-Tampa) has filed House Bill 925, a bill that would require that breast cancer public education, outreach initiative and professional education programs use guidelines established by the American Cancer Society. The change in guidelines is necessitated by the controversial action of the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) on Nov. 16, 2009. The task force changed its recommendation for mammography screenings from once every 1 to 2 years for women 40 years or older to a recommendation against routine breast cancer screening for women under the age of 50.

“Scientific studies strongly support the lifesaving benefits of routine mammography screening for women between the ages of 40 and 50,” said Representative Cruz. “I believe that this legislation will help to save the lives of women in that age group.”

The American Cancer Society and countless other medical, public health, and breast cancer advocacy organizations recommend regular mammography screenings based primarily on the published evidence from international prospective randomized clinical trials. These trials are regularly re-analyzed, especially those that continue to follow the patients in the studies. When these studies are combined, it was found that mammography reduced breast cancer mortality by at least 15 to 20 percent for women ages 40 to 49 as well as for women ages 50 and older. Some individual studies demonstrated mortality reductions of 30 percent or greater for women in their 40s and women 50 and above.

Representative Cruz’s House Bill 925 is awaiting its first hearing in the Health Care Regulation Policy Committee.