What screenings do I need at 50?

By 50 the complete adult screening schedule is in play - this is the decade to confirm nothing has been missed rather than to start. The cancer core: colorectal screening should be underway (the CDC says begin at 45 - by 50 you should be inside one of its tracks, colonoscopy every 10 years or home stool tests on their shorter cycle); mammograms continue for women every 2 years through 74 per the USPSTF; cervical screening continues for women to 65 if history is normal; and lung cancer screening joins for people with a heavy smoking history - current smokers or those who quit within 15 years should ask about the annual low-dose CT. The metabolic core: blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes screening on their cycles, since risk climbs steeply in this decade. The conversations to initiate: bone density (routine at 65 for women, earlier with fracture history or steroids), prostate screening for men (a shared-decision talk, not an automatic test), and hepatitis C testing at least once for all adults. The vaccine additions that define the decade, per the CDC: the shingles vaccine from 50, RSV vaccination at 75 (or 50 to 74 at increased risk), plus the yearly flu, Tdap/Td booster, and COVID maintenance. Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text, that can audit your list against your history.