Are You Dense?
By Bowers, Katherine | |
Proquest LLC |
Mammograms do more than just detect breast cancer. Here's what else you can-and should-learn at your annual screening.
The undressing, the bulky machine, the awkward dance of positioning, the squishing. About 37 million mammograms are performed in
But beyond the news that you're cancer-free, there's something else important you might learn from that letter: Do you have dense breasts? An estimated two-thirds of premenopausal women do. Density has nothing to do with the look, size or feel of your breasts. breasts are classified as dense if they contain more than 50 percent fibroglandular (glandular and connective) tissue versus fatty tissue. this can only be determined by mammogram.
Gere's why it matters to know: Dense breasts are more difficult to accurately screen with traditional mammograms. And, for reasons not fully understood yet, they are at higher risk for developing cancer. A woman with extremely dense breasts has twice the risk of developing cancer in the next 10 years as a woman with average density, says kelly roberts, mD, an assistant professor of radiology and head of the breast imaging department at the University of illinois hospital and health Sciences System. while many women know the role that family history can play in breast cancer risk, relatively few are aware of density as another risk factor, says Dr. roberts.
indeed, Diagnosis Anxiety: The Working Mother Breast Screening Report, a new survey of more than 2,500 women, conducted by the working mother research institute (wmri) and sponsored by ge healthcare, finds that nearly half of women don't know if they have dense breasts, fewer than half know that mammography is less accurate in screening dense breast tissue, and a mere 13 percent know about the link between density and cancer.
Among the patients she sees, breast density is a blind spot, says Dr. roberts.
What can you see?
most women have dense breasts before they hit menopause. As we age, our breasts generally become less dense, although some women's breasts remain dense their whole lives. (A quarter of postmenopausal women have dense breasts, according to
on a mammogram, fatty tissue appears dark, making even tiny white tumors easy to spot. but fibroglandular tissue shows up white, too. when there's a lot of it present, meaning a dense breast, white tumors are difficult to spot. in fact, mammography is estimated to be only 48 percent effective in detecting cancers in dense breasts, compared to 98 percent effective in fatty breasts, says Dr. roberts. As a result, if you have dense breasts, you are more likely to be asked to have additional tests to ensure your breasts are clear.
in our survey, wmri found that 7 in 10 women with dense breasts are called back for more tests. most commonly, they then receive a breast ultrasound (the same equipment that is used to check the fetus when you're pregnant). Ultrasound yields lots of detail, but because it's so sensitive, it is more likely to find "false positives," abnormal cells that aren't cancer.
A small number of women we surveyed-7 percent-have had an mri, which is considered an effective way to find small tumors. it's prescribed sparingly because it's expensive and not always covered by insurance, explains Dr. roberts.
What can you do?
First, find out if you are dense. At present, 19 states mandate that a woman be informed in writing if she has dense breasts (see areyoudense.org for a list). the
what else can you do? be aware of lifestyle risk factors you can control. Don't smoke, limit your consumption of alcohol, and maintain a healthy weight. breastfeeding and having a child before age 30 have also been shown to reduce breast cancer risk.
right now, says Dr. roberts, if you have dense breasts, be aware of it as a personal risk factor, get a regular mammogram, and discuss with your doctor whether you should have additional types of screening.
Breast Basics
* The
* More than 200,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year.
* About 90 percent of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer are expected to survive at least five years.
* In our
* Most survey participants got a first mammogram as a proactive health maintenance choice, rather than a reaction to finding a lump in a breast.
Ultrasound 51%
Breast biopsy 25%
MRI 7%
Density & you
* Breast density can be hereditary (if Mom has dense breasts, you're more likely to as well).
* There's no relationship between size and density.
* Breast density decreases with age, but some women's breasts stay dense their whole lives.
* If you get called back for additional imaging, clear a few hours in your schedule. It's common to have the radiologist on duty review your images immediately, so if additional views or an ultrasound is needed, it can be done right away.
Copyright: | (c) 2014 Working Woman |
Wordcount: | 987 |
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