Deficiencies of mammograms
Adapting article of PoMindy Tyson McHorse
One of the greatest tragedies of the cancer epidemic is that science and technology give many people false hope. Especially women.
Today's example: Too many women - particularly those who are at high risk of breast cancer - do not realize that mammograms are ineffective.
Yes, some tumors are detected, but more than a third of breast cancers are lost in women with dense breasts. And over 40% of women in the U.S. have dense breasts.
That means that mammography gives women a false comfort that they are free of the disease, when they actually have tumors growing larger every day.
Technithians simply do not know, because fatty tissue masks the appearance of tumors. Now technology has come up with a new solution - but you will have to overcome some obstacles for the stubbornness of some doctors, if you want to achieve benefit.
Several studies confirm that with increasing density of the tissues, the ability of mammography to detect lesions subsides. A mammogram in a woman with dense breast tissue white areas shows where the tissue is dense.
But the problem is, cancer also is shown as white areas.
Worse, women with dense breast tissue are four to six times more likely to develop breast cancer. So you have a large group of women with the greatest risk for this terrible disease that does not know they are at high risk and have no way to reliably detect tumors.
But there may be a solution on the horizon, at least in terms of early detection. It's called the automated breast ultrasound the breast (ABUS), and seems to be detected 30% more cancers in women with dense breasts who have normal mammograms.
Better yet, is in the process of becoming a necessary part of the selection process.
A study in the September 2009 Radiology European Commission showed that , with automated whole breast ultrasound detection rate of cancer in women doubles with high risk of breast cancer and dense breasts . Even more amazing is that tripled the rate of detection of cancers smaller than 10 mm. These results provide a rationale for its inclusion in routine widespread screening.
This is important because early detection is still one of the best ways to beat
existing cancer. In fact, according to the American Cancer Society, early
detection means a survival rate of 96%.
How to know if you have dense breasts?
Breast density has nothing to do with the way the female breast during the examination. It has more to do with having more gland tissue (making drains milk), along with the supporting tissue (called stroma) surrounding the gland.
Dense breast tissue is hereditary, but it can affect women of all races.
The simple answer to find breast density is this:
The volume of dense tissue in a woman is taken and divided by the volume of her breasts, and then multiply by 100 for a percentage, so you have the density of the tissues. But women may be able to find its own volume of breast tissue?
Course. But instead, we rely on our medical system, and therein lay the problem. Currently, radiologists and physicians have access to information on the density of the tissue, but usually retain that valuable patient information.
Just look at what is happening in California. There is a bill pending Senate to require mammogram providers tell them to patients about their breast tissue density when their letters mammogram results are mailed, as many doctors do not share this information.
Also a similar bill was introduced and passed in both the State Assembly and Senate, but was vetoed by a governor who echoed the concerns of the California Medical Association. Subjectively thought thought let women know about their dense breast tissue that would put them at greater risk and who could benefit from additional screening - . “Unnecessary anxiety " would cause the woman a
Thank God, at least, to advocate as a survivor of breast Amy Colton California, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in advanced stage cancer. She had three invasive tumors that the treating physician believes had probably been there for seven years.
How to know if you have dense breasts?
Breast density has nothing to do with the way the female breast during the examination. It has more to do with having more gland tissue (making drains milk), along with the supporting tissue (called stroma) surrounding the gland.
Dense breast tissue is hereditary, but it can affect women of all races.
The simple answer to find breast density is this:
The volume of dense tissue in a woman is taken and divided by the volume of her breasts, and then multiply by 100 for a percentage, so you have the density of the tissues. But women may be able to find its own volume of breast tissue?
Course. But instead, we rely on our medical system, and therein lay the problem. Currently, radiologists and physicians have access to information on the density of the tissue, but usually retain that valuable patient information.
Just look at what is happening in California. There is a bill pending Senate to require mammogram providers tell them to patients about their breast tissue density when their letters mammogram results are mailed, as many doctors do not share this information.
Also a similar bill was introduced and passed in both the State Assembly and Senate, but was vetoed by a governor who echoed the concerns of the California Medical Association. Subjectively thought thought let women know about their dense breast tissue that would put them at greater risk and who could benefit from additional screening - . “Unnecessary anxiety " would cause the woman a
Thank God, at least, to advocate as a survivor of breast Amy Colton California, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in advanced stage cancer. She had three invasive tumors that the treating physician believes had probably been there for seven years.
During those seven years she had
been getting "normal" mammogram results.
I.
Colton testified that
both your doctor and radiologist knew she had dense breast tissue, but never
said it's in a higher risk, so they never hit upon to seek other alternatives
given the "negative" results.
Colton has already been sixteen rounds of chemotherapy, five surgeries and six weeks of daily radiation, all because their regular mammograms given a false sense of security.
That's one of the reasons why automated breast ultrasound is so important.
Not only is it better for detecting malignant tumors in dense breast tissue, and also about to be approved as a screening tool for regulating cancer.
Thus, women with dense breasts may be examined in advance instead of waiting to be informed that they have dense tissue and then wait for additional projections.
We've been waiting for this for a long time. Ultrasound technology automated breast was first licensed for diagnostic use in 2005.
In October 2008, the Food and Drug Administration U.S. approved its use to help diagnose women with suspicious abnormalities to be breast cancer.
But not yet become part of routine screening process.
Fortunately, a group of experts to the FDA recommended that automated ultrasound must be approved for the detection of normal breast cancer in women with dense breasts.
Manufacturing. (The ABUS was created by U- Systems, Inc. and distributed by Siemens . )
The study in the September 2009 European Radiology as mentioned above , whole-breast ultrasound ( ABUS ) found 32 of the 49 cancers in women with dense breasts , while mammography itself found only 19 of the 49 .
You cannot fail to know "a lot” about their own health
It seems to me that it is the right of a woman to know if she has dense tissue and requires an additional inspection.
It makes no sense that doctors do not tell women about their increased risk.
And if money is the big concern (Is not that always the case ?) , should consider the early detection and treatment can save tens of thousands of dollars in treatment of advanced cancer - not to mention the priority to save the life of a person.
So on the one hand, it is good to know that technology is advancing and improving.
But the fancy technology is meaningless unless it is integrated into routine diagnostic tests for people to get real benefits.
Meanwhile, it is recommended that any women with dense breast tissue should take balanced decisions take reasonable life to avoid the risk of cancer.
At least - eating healthy foods, limiting alcohol, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly and not smoking.
And if you are a woman and do not know if your tissue is dense, keep asking until you find someone who is willing to tell the truth about their risk .
In Use already been enacted that the results of breast density should be informed by the patient radiologists.
I hate to say we have to wait and see what happens so if you are a woman, be sure to ask your doctor about your level of tissue density.
And if you are told you have breast cancer, what then?
Review the best options for treatment, as we see them.
The Special Report also covers thermo graphic , a screening test for breast cancer that we believe is far superior to mammography.
Mammography - besides being inaccurate - actually causes cancer with its massive annual radiation dose, and if you have it in the beginning, can complicate their status, because the current technique, drastically press breasts and can negatively contribute to dissemination.
Colton has already been sixteen rounds of chemotherapy, five surgeries and six weeks of daily radiation, all because their regular mammograms given a false sense of security.
That's one of the reasons why automated breast ultrasound is so important.
Not only is it better for detecting malignant tumors in dense breast tissue, and also about to be approved as a screening tool for regulating cancer.
Thus, women with dense breasts may be examined in advance instead of waiting to be informed that they have dense tissue and then wait for additional projections.
We've been waiting for this for a long time. Ultrasound technology automated breast was first licensed for diagnostic use in 2005.
In October 2008, the Food and Drug Administration U.S. approved its use to help diagnose women with suspicious abnormalities to be breast cancer.
But not yet become part of routine screening process.
Fortunately, a group of experts to the FDA recommended that automated ultrasound must be approved for the detection of normal breast cancer in women with dense breasts.
Manufacturing. (The ABUS was created by U- Systems, Inc. and distributed by Siemens . )
The study in the September 2009 European Radiology as mentioned above , whole-breast ultrasound ( ABUS ) found 32 of the 49 cancers in women with dense breasts , while mammography itself found only 19 of the 49 .
You cannot fail to know "a lot” about their own health
It seems to me that it is the right of a woman to know if she has dense tissue and requires an additional inspection.
It makes no sense that doctors do not tell women about their increased risk.
And if money is the big concern (Is not that always the case ?) , should consider the early detection and treatment can save tens of thousands of dollars in treatment of advanced cancer - not to mention the priority to save the life of a person.
So on the one hand, it is good to know that technology is advancing and improving.
But the fancy technology is meaningless unless it is integrated into routine diagnostic tests for people to get real benefits.
Meanwhile, it is recommended that any women with dense breast tissue should take balanced decisions take reasonable life to avoid the risk of cancer.
At least - eating healthy foods, limiting alcohol, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly and not smoking.
And if you are a woman and do not know if your tissue is dense, keep asking until you find someone who is willing to tell the truth about their risk .
In Use already been enacted that the results of breast density should be informed by the patient radiologists.
I hate to say we have to wait and see what happens so if you are a woman, be sure to ask your doctor about your level of tissue density.
And if you are told you have breast cancer, what then?
Review the best options for treatment, as we see them.
The Special Report also covers thermo graphic , a screening test for breast cancer that we believe is far superior to mammography.
Mammography - besides being inaccurate - actually causes cancer with its massive annual radiation dose, and if you have it in the beginning, can complicate their status, because the current technique, drastically press breasts and can negatively contribute to dissemination.
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