The Importance of a Mammogram

The Importance of a Mammogram

Once a woman reaches age 40, the majority of medical institutions recommend a baseline mammogram and yearly mammograms, essentially forever. For many women, though, this is truly a no-brainer; it is something they do each year after they see the gynecologist or on a similar anniversary. And, it provides them with peace of mind.

The exception may be if you have symptoms or changes in your breasts, or if you have a family history of breast cancer. Your doctor may then recommend that you have a mammogram at an earlier age.

Best Screening Tool

The mammogram, an x-ray picture of the breast, remains the best screening tool to detect breast cancer. Screening mammograms check for masses, distortions, and calcifications in the breast. Mammograms can detect a cancer early when it is easier to treat and before it is big enough to feel or cause symptoms. Also, when caught early, localized cancers can be removed without requiring a mastectomy (breast removal).

Breast and Skin Cancers

Aside from non-melanoma skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States. It is also one of the leading causes of cancer death among women of all races and origins.

Mammography does not replace the monthly breast self examination or the examination by a doctor. Physical examinations, though, typically find breast cancers when they are much larger than those detected by mammography. Like so much else, the technology has changed since the screening mammogram was introduced in the 1970s.

Today, modern-day mammography only involves a tiny amount of radiation — equal to the amount normally acquired from a year of background radiation.

Make it a Good Experience

Here are some tips to ensure your mammogram experience is a good one:

• Try not to have your mammogram the week before you get your period or during your period. Your breasts may be tender or swollen then.
• Bring your past mammogram films/results with you.
• If you’ve been to the same facility before, make sure your past results are available to whoever is reading the study.

• Once you find a facility in which you have confidence, try to go there every year, so that your mammograms can be compared from year to year.

I will be writing periodically about the various radiology issues.  Please submit questions below and let me know what you would like to discuss.

ABOUT DR. STEIN:

Tina R. Stein., MD, received her medical degree from the Medical College of Pennsylvania and served a residency in Radiology and a fellowship in Nuclear Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She is board certified in Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine. She has been on the Riddle Hospital staff since 1989.