Women should get mammograms in their 40's

Prof Mokbel is championing for the NHS Breast Screening programme to lower their screening age from 50-70 to screen women in their 40's.

This would cut mastectomy rates in half because breast cancer would be caught earlier.

Professor Mokbel said women should think about screening from 40, rather than 50. Privately, digital mammograms cost about £200.

"Scanning women aged 40 to 49 would reduce the chance of dying from breast cancer by approximately 25 per cent - and that's a conservative estimate. So I would say that maybe 1,000 lives a year could be saved."

Dr Perry, a colleague of Professor Mokbel's, concluded: "Regular screening is already proven to lower the chance of women dying from breast cancer. The results of our study support the importance of regular screening in the under-50 age group and confirm that annual mammography improves the chances of breast conservation should breast cancer develop."

Read the article by The Telegraph: Mammograms for 40-somethings 'would save 1,000 a year'