Ayotte Holds Roundtable on Protecting Access to Life-Saving Breast Cancer Screenings

On Friday, July 29, U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte joined breast cancer survivors and health care professionals at Portsmouth Regional Hospital to discuss legislation she introduced with Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) - the Protecting Access to Lifesaving Screenings (PALS) Act (S. 1926) - that would preserve access to annual mammograms for women ages 40-49. Senators Ayotte and Mikulski introduced the bill in order to protect access to annual mammogram screenings for women under age 50 in the wake of U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations that could have impeded access to life-saving screenings for these women.

Friday's roundtable discussion was a part of a series of discussions with breast cancer survivors and health care professionals that Senator Ayotte has held at cancer screening centers and health care facilities across New Hampshire.

"Most women have a friend, a sister, a mother, or a loved one who has been affected by breast cancer, which is why life-saving preventive screenings like mammograms are so important," said Senator Ayotte. "While I was pleased that key provisions of our bill, the PALS Act, were signed into law, today's very productive discussion underscored that there's more work to be done to protect access to mammograms for women of all ages. I appreciated the input we received from breast cancer survivors and medical professionals at Portsmouth Regional Hospital today, and look forward to continuing our work together."

Matthew Oliff, MD, Radiologist, Portsmouth Regional Hospital, emphasized the importance of regular breast cancer screenings for women during the roundtable discussion. "Annual breast cancer screenings for women of all ages are critically important. Breast cancer tends to be more aggressive in women aged 40-49. Consider the life of a young 42-year mother, and what a tremendous loss it would be to her family and to her community if she lost her life to breast cancer. Annual screenings are also crucial for older women. I just diagnosed an otherwise healthy 86-year old with breast cancer, but we found it early and she will likely be able to become cancer-free with minor surgery," he said.

Senators Ayotte and Mikulski introduced the PALS Act in order to protect access to annual mammogram screenings for women under age 50 in the wake of USPSTF recommendations that could have impeded access to life-saving screenings for women ages 40-49. The legislation places a two-year moratorium on the USPSTF's recommendations, providing time for Congress and others to review the impact these recommendations would have on women being screened for this deadly disease, as well as concerns about the USPSTF process. Key provisions of the PALS Act were signed into law as a part of the government funding bill in December.

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