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In reply to the discussion: Young women, are you upset you'll have to pay for Viagra [View all]mercuryblues
(14,521 posts)The tests are ordered if a person is n a high risk group or if the Dr. during his exam feels something abnormal. The tests suck for results But it is all we have for now. What worries me more than the false positives are the false negatives. Neither of these tests are denied coverage; they just aren't considered reliable enough to be considered preventative care-yet.
Some people on this board are screaming unfair!1! unfair1!1 Women get free cancer screening tests in a mammogram and men don't get a free PCA test. A mammogram has an 83% rate of finding cancer. The rate of a false negative is below 20%, mostly because of breast density.
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An ultrasound would detect breast cancer in many of the false negatives, but again that is not covered under preventative care and insurance companies would not cover it for breast exams. States are now starting to enact laws that require insurance companies to cover ultrasounds in certain cases for women.