EFN

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) has recommended that women delay their first Pap test for cervical cancer until they are 21 years old. They also recommend that they can wait longer to go for follow up screenings.

These new guidelines were released Friday. They have also concluded that testing more often did not catch any more cancers. The new guidelines would give woman relief from unnecessary stress, anxiety and sometimes harmful and painful treatments that were done because of suspicious growths that would not have caused problems in the first place.

These new recommendations come in the middle of sharp controversy over new guidelines by a federal task force that says women should wait until age 50 before starting routine mammograms and then only get them every two years.

The release of two sets of new guidelines in the same week was purely coincidental officials said. The new cervical cancer screening guidelines could fuel the fire over the mammograms which has become quite an issue in the past few days.

A representative for the government appointed task force said that they understand why people are concerned about the new guidelines. Many believe the primary reason behind the new guidelines is because it will carve billions out of our health care system.