Health Screening Guidelines, Women Ages 40 to 49

Screening tests are a key to managing your health. A screening test is done to find problems in people who don't have any symptoms. Screening tests are not used to diagnose. They are used to find out if more testing is needed. The goal may be to find a disease early so it can be treated with more success. Or the goal may be to find a disease early so you can make lifestyle changes. You may need regular checkups to help you reduce your risk of disease.

Below are guidelines for women ages 40 to 49. Talk with your healthcare provider to stay up-to-date.

Screening	Who needs it	How often
Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes	All women in this age group	At least every 3 years
Type 2 diabetes	All women with prediabetes	Every year
Alcohol misuse	All women in this age group	At routine exams
Blood pressure	All women in this age group	Once a year if your blood pressure is normal. Normal is less than 120/80 mm Hg. If your blood pressure is higher than this, follow the advice of your healthcare provider.
Breast cancer	All women at average risk in this age group. Expert groups vary on their advice. Talk with your provider.	Talk with your healthcare provider to help you decide when to start mammogram screening. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force advises mammograms every other year starting at age 40. The American Cancer Society advises that women ages 40 to 44 have the choice to start yearly mammograms. They advise yearly mammograms for women ages 45 to 54. All women should know how their breasts normally look and feel. stop

Screening

Who needs it

How often

Cervical cancer

All women in this age group, unless they have had a complete hysterectomy

Pap test every 3 years or Pap test and HPV test every 5 years

Colorectal cancer

Women age 45 years and older at average risk

Talk with your provider about which test is right for you:

Flexible sigmoidoscopy every 5 years
Colonoscopy every 10 years
CT colonography (virtual colonoscopy) every 5 years
Yearly fecal occult blood test
Yearly fecal immunochemical test (FIT)
Stool DNA test every 3 years

If you have a test that is not a colonoscopy and have an abnormal test result, you will need a colonoscopy.

You may need to be screened more or less often. This is based on personal or family health history. Talk with your provider.

Screening	Who needs it	How often
Chlamydia	Women at higher risk	At routine exams if you're at risk or have symptoms
Depression	All women in this age group	At routine exams
Gonorrhea	Sexually active women at higher risk	At routine exams
Hepatitis C	Women in this age group at higher risk	At routine exams
High cholesterol or triglycerides	All women ages 45 and older who are at risk for coronary artery disease. Younger women, talk with your provider.	At least every 5 years
HIV	All women in this age group	At routine exams. Those with risk factors for HIV should be tested at least 1 time a year.
Obesity	All women in this age group	At routine exams
Syphilis	Women who are at higher risk. Ask your provider.	At routine exams
Tuberculosis	Women who are at higher risk	Ask your provider
Vision	All women in this age group	Full exam at age 40. Then eye exams every 2 to 4 years. If you have a chronic disease, ask your provider how often you need an eye exam.

Health Counseling	Who needs it	How often
BRCA gene mutation testing for breast and ovarian cancer	Women with higher risk for a gene mutation	When your risk is known
Breast cancer and chemoprevention	Women at high risk for breast cancer	When your risk is known
Diet and exercise	Women who are overweight or obese	When diagnosed, and then at routine exams
Domestic violence	All women in this age group	At routine exams
Sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention	Women who are at higher risk. Talk with your provider.	At routine exams
Use of tobacco	All women in this age group	Every exam