Women should undergo breast cancer tests at 40 years old

Women should now undergo breast cancer tests at the age of 40 instead of 50, according to a panel of experts in the U.S. published on Tuesday, adding that its new instructions could save more lives by a percentage of 19 percent.

In the U.S. about 264,000 women are diagnosed by breast cancer every year, and around 2,400 men. The panel added that around 42,000 women and 500 men die every year as a result of the disease.

The tests usually include mammograms, and according to the new instructions women starting 40 years old should speak to their doctors about undergoing a test, especially if they have history in their family.

There has been an increase in the number of women diagnosed by breast cancer among the age group from 40 to 49 years old by two percent during 2015 to 2019.

The new instructions are working to prevent the huge gap in the death rate between black and white women. According to the panel, black women are 40 percent more prune of dying by breast cancer than white women.