BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Jennifer Hennick credits a breast self-exam to saving her life. While she was in the shower, she found a lump.

"I didn't have any family history like most people who have cancer," she said.

But that didn't matter, after a mammogram and other diagnostic tests she was told she had stage two breast cancer, and she was only 28 years old.

A government panel of doctors and scientist have recently come under fire for saying self-exams are of no value. Hennick couldn't disagree more.

"I really think that it's kind of scary to say that they don't really work and to start discouraging people from actually checking themselves," said Hennick.

But what's causing the most controversy is the panel's recommendation for women who have no family history of cancer to start getting mammograms at 50, not at 40 which has been recommended by the American Cancer Society for years. And to be screened every two years not annually.

"I really think it's a step in the wrong direction," said Dr. Ravi Patel, the medical director at the Comprehensive Blood and Cancer Center. "One in eight women, if you just look at this, every eighth woman you see is going to have breast cancer."

Patel thinks these guidelines are disturbing, especially when early detection is crucial when it comes to surviving cancer.

"One third of the population which we feel needs to be screened for breast cancer don't go for their screening. So when you come out with a message like this, it's horrific in this way that many of these people are not getting screened and many more will now start assuming that maybe we don't need to get screened," said Patel.

So what should patients do?

Patel says women should continue with self-exams and when they get to 40, talk to their physician about breast cancer screening options.

Hennick strongly believes these putting these guidelines in place is not about saving lives.

"I really believe that it's all just a money thing, honestly. And we should be looking for ways to save our healthcare dollars for things, but really cutting in the area of screening, I really think that's a bad decision," she said.