One side of the breast is placed on a metal or plastic plate that is covered with another metal plate. Then, a picture is taken of the breast. But many doctors now recommend routine screening at forty, too. If you do have a history of benign cysts, and you're comfortable waiting until fifty, do so. If you're uncomfortable waiting, screening younger than fifty may reassure you and lessen your anxiety, which, in turn, will make you healthier and better able to combat breast cancer, should the time ever come.
Guidelines are in flux and in debate.
Regardless of your age, you should be doing BSE and familiarizing yourself with your breasts so that you'll be prepared to notice anything unusual. You should also make sure that a manual breast exam is performed by your doctor each year with your Pap smears. Go to a reliable screening center, one that specializes in mammograms and does at least twenty mammograms a day. The image of the breast on the X ray must be of the highest quality. Good equipment used only for mammography and purchased no later than three years ago is your best bet.