expect at your annual, so you can go into the exam with confidence:
A Standard Physical: This typically includes height, weight and blood pressure.
Family & Personal Health History Collection: You may fill out a form or chat with a provider about your health history. This information should be updated annually.
Clinical Breast Exam: Clinical breast exams are optional, but plan to have a conversation with your healthcare provider about if this makes sense for you and your health. A breast exam only lasts a few minutes and can help protect you from any surprises when it comes to breast cancer.
Mammogram: Plan to talk to your healthcare provider about starting mammograms at age 40. But, if you have a first-degree relative who was diagnosed with breast cancer, you should schedule your first mammogram when you are 10 years younger than the age at which your relative was diagnosed. So, if your mom was diagnosed at 45, talk to your doctor about starting mammograms at 35.
No Two Exams are Alike!: Everyone has a different family health history, personal health history, and lifestyle – so your exam will not look like someone else’s!
Other Helpful Tips: To help guide a powerful provider-patient conversation, go to AssessYourRisk.org and complete our breast and ovarian risk assessment quiz before your well-woman exam. Print out your quiz results and use them as a conversation starter!
Under the Affordable Care Act, the annual well-woman exam is completely covered by insurance. So no excuses! This year, Bright Pink is taking a new and innovative approach to helping you schedule your exam. Start a conversation with us by visiting BrightPink.org/annual.
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*Source: The ZocDoc Healthcare Dropout Survey (May 2015). Retrieved from: https://www.zocdoc.com/about/news/new-study-why-americans-are-dropping-out-of-healthcare/
One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Two-thirds of women that are diagnosed with ovarian cancer will die as a result of their diagnosis. However, if a woman is aware of her risk level, she has up to an 85% chance of reducing that risk. At Bright Pink, we embrace this reality and believe that by putting Awareness in Action™, women can be set on a path to better breast and ovarian health. Since Bright Pink’s inception, we have reached over 20 million women with our message. To learn more about your personal risk, visit AssessYourRisk.org.