The road to long-term health begins with your primary care doctor, who oversees your preventive health screenings throughout your life. With your physician’s help, you can take proactive steps to prevent, delay and alleviate chronic illness like heart disease and diabetes.
Let's Talk About Prevention
- Get an annual wellness exam even if you are healthy and talk to your doctor about which screenings are necessary.
- Know your numbers (blood pressure, cholesterol, and BMI) and keep them at healthy levels.
- Review your vaccinations and keep them up to date. Get the shingles vaccine if you haven’t already and start the pneumonia vaccine at age 65 or older. Learn more about vaccinations >
- Go to the dermatologist for a mole and freckle check. Find a dermatologist now >
- Get a mammogram annually, depending on your risk category. Talk to your doctor about any changes in your breasts to prevent breast cancer. Learn more about mammograms and breast imaging >
- Take cervical cancer screening (pap test) off your list of required tests after age 65 if you’ve had three consecutive normal results within 10 years.
- Get a bone density test at age 65 to screen for osteoporosis. Learn about bone density screenings >
- Until age 75, you should schedule regular colon cancer screenings. Talk to you your doctor about which screenings may be right for you and if you should continue after age. 76 Learn about our colon cancer screening center >
- Schedule your colonoscopy. Learn about our colon cancer screening center >
- Have an open conversation with your doctor about weight, nutrition and lifestyle.
Find a Doctor
Partnering with a primary care and OB/GYN doctor is foundational to maintaining good health now and in the decades to come.
These recommendations are intended as a guide for women 65 and beyond who are of general good health to discuss with their physician.
Please call 1-800-247-9580 for a referral to a physician to discuss these recommendations.
Screenings and Vaccinations
You may also want to ask your doctor about screenings and vaccinations appropriate for adult women. These include:
- Dental exam
- Hearing test
- Vision test
- Hepatitis C screening
- Varicella vaccine (chicken pox)
- Measles mumps and rubella vaccine
- Tdap booster vaccine (tetanus)
- Bone density (osteoporosis)
- Diabetes screening
- Lung cancer screening. Learn if you qualify >