New industry recommendations advocate for earlier and more frequent mammograms

Women who have regular mammograms are more likely to find cancer earlier and have better outcomes – and industry experts are increasingly focusing on the benefits of more frequent screening, beginning earlier in life, as well as the impact of ethnicity on breast cancer diagnoses and survival rates. Annual screening of women ages 40-79 with either digital mammography or tomosynthesis reduces mortality by more than 41%. [1]

Cigna Healthcare helps support your patient care and drive better outcomes in your female patients. Each October, Cigna celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness Month by reaching out to female customers ages 40-79 to remind them of the benefits of early detection, and a reminder of their Cigna coverage for annual screening mammograms.[2]

New guidance

Industry guidelines for breast cancer screening were updated in the spring of 2024 in recognition of the rising trend of more breast cancer diagnoses and more aggressive cancers occurring in women at earlier ages than ever before.

The American College of Radiology recommends annual screening beginning at age 40 for women with an average risk of cancer, and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPTF) recommends biennial screening commencing at age 40. These guidelines update the 2016 guidance of screening mammograms for women every other year, beginning at age 50.

What the statistics say

According to industry data, women diagnosed with breast cancer who had annual mammograms were less likely to have late-stage cancer and had better outcomes than women who received screenings less often.

Industry studies point to the benefit of beginning screening efforts earlier, and more often:

• In the United States, about 240,000 women get breast cancer each year, and 42,000 women die from the disease.[3]
• Breast cancer is the second-most common cancer and the second most common cause of cancer death among all American women (only lung cancer kills more women). [4]
• The rate of breast cancer among women aged 40 to 49 increased by two percent per year from 2015 to 2019.[5]
• Only 65 percent of women over age 40 are screened for breast cancer and only half of this group are getting screened annually. This is due in part to the differing guidelines about appropriate screening intervals. [6]
• Black women are 40 percent more likely to die of breast cancer than white females.[7]
• There is a sharp increase in new breast cancer cases among Asian American and Pacific Islander women—a group that traditionally has had much lower rates of diagnosis – and of these new cases, a significant number are found in women under age 50, surpassing the rates among Black and Hispanic women.[8]
• Minority populations not only have higher rates of breast cancer, but are also less compliant with recommended preventive screening, making education and greater visibility critical for these individuals. Statistics indicate that 69 percent of Black women and 65 percent of white women were up to date on their mammograms in 2021, but only 56 percent of Asian women and 47 percent of American Indian/Alaskan women living in the United States were compliant.⁷
  
  

Cigna Healthcare outreach to customer and providers

Many providers choose to recommend annual screening for breast cancer to keep patients on a regular schedule for exams, depending on the patient’s personal history and related risk factors, with conversations beginning at age 40.

Based on patients’ individual health history and other risk factors, including heredity, lifestyle, and a prior cancer diagnosis, providers and patients may together decide on a screening plan that begins even earlier or includes more in-depth screening methods, such as a breast magnetic resonance imagining (MRI) or ultrasound screening.

Cigna Healthcare helps to drive adherence by reaching out to female patients who are delayed or late getting recommended breast cancer screenings. This helps to address health disparities among patients in affected socio-ethnic groups that typically have lower screening rates and higher rates of disease. As with other health conditions, difficulty accessing care is one of the major barriers faced by Black women and other women of color, due in part to lack of affordable care. These populations also tend to have higher rates of comorbidities that increase breast cancer risk and affect breast cancer outcomes, such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

Cigna Healthcare also works with providers to ensure that patients follow the recommended preventive breast care plan that aligns with their individual health history and risk level, to support early identification and disease detection, less aggressive and more effective treatment, and better health outcomes.

Provider and patient resources

Provider information about Cigna Healthcare coverage policies and clinical guidelines for breast imaging are available on the on the EviCore by Evernorth® provider portal at Evernorth.com/Cigna > High-Tech Imaging and Cardiology Guidelines > Breast Imaging Guidelines.

Patients can find answers to questions about their plan coverage, or help finding an in-network provider, by logging in to myCigna.com or the myCigna.com mobile app.

[1] Study supports growing body of literature validating annual screening from age 40 to at least 79 | RSNA

[2] Plans may vary, so customers should see their plan documents for details of their plan’s preventive care coverage.

[3] Breast Cancer Awareness | Cancer | CDC

[4] Breast Cancer Statistics | How Common Is Breast Cancer? | American Cancer Society

[5] Female Breast Cancer — Cancer Stat Facts

[6] New study supports annual breast cancer screening for women over 40 | ScienceDaily

[7] Why Black Women Are More Likely to Die of Breast Cancer | Breast Cancer Research Foundation (bcrf.org)

[8] Breast cancer rises among Asian American and Pacific Islander women (news-medical.net)