Wasserman Schultz: New Mammogram Guidelines ‘Causing Mass Confusion’

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), a breast-cancer survivor, has been busy on the news shows this week, attacking the new guideline that women seek routine mammograms later in life. Last night, she was at it again, telling MSNBC’s Chris Matthews that it’s “totally inappropriate” for a panel without any sitting cancer specialists to make such recommendations.

It’s a ridiculous set of recommendations. It’s causing mass confusion among women, because we have been trained to know that, when we’re 40 years old, we should get a mammogram routinely.

Wasserman Schultz also criticized the suggestion that women between the ages of 40 and 49 should simply talk with their doctors to gauge their breast-cancer risk.

About 75 percent of women who have breast cancer didn’t have any risk, weren’t in a higher-risk category. I was in a higher-risk category, didn’t even know it until I found my lump myself and went to the doctor.

So, these recommendations are really patronizing, because they’re presuming that women can’t handle more information and make a rational decision with their health care provider.

The congresswoman’s office hasn’t returned calls this week about whether Congress needs to enter this fray legislatively.