September 2020 Health Matters

The latest news on the health and wellness issues that matter most • September 2020 HealthMatters

After Your MAMMOGRAM : Understanding Your RESULTS

A screening mammogram is used to check for breast cancer in women who have no signs or symptoms of the disease. It is a series of images of breast tissue made by low radiation-ray beams. “The results can help find beast cancer one to three years before a lump can actually be felt in the breast, therefore being one of the most effective ways to find and treat beast cancer early,” says Dr. Priyanka Handa, MD, Director of Breast Imaging at NCH Imaging Centers. Results of mammograms will be explained by your physician, but be sure to ask questions if you don’t understand what you are told. Here is some information below that will help you.

can help detect additional cancers in women with dense breast tissue with no cancer detected on mammogram. My mammogram described my breasts as being “heterogeneously dense, which may obscure small masses.” What does this mean? This means that you have moderately dense tissue. This is common and no cause for concern. Sometimes dense tissue can make it harder to accurately read a mammogram. Luckily, the newest 3D mammography technology has been FDA approved as superior for women with dense breasts, therefore improving accuracy. NCH Imaging Centers offer digital 3D mammogram, which allows physicians to examine breast tissue layer by layer. So instead of viewing the breast tissue in one flat image, the radiologist can examine the tissue one “slice” at a time reducing callbacks by up to 40%. “3D mammography is the only method proven to find 20-65% more invasive breast cancers compared to 2D alone, an average increase of 41%,” says Dr. Handa. “NCH Imaging has cut the radiation dose of a typical 3D mammogram in half, while maintaining excellent diagnostic accuracy.”

The rating system

Only a doctor (radiologist) can interpret a mammogram. The technologist who gives the test can’t tell you the results. They also can’t discuss what they are looking at while doing the exam. Radiologists look for problems in the images. Then they take this information and sum it up in one number (score) when they send their findings to your healthcare provider. Your mammogram results will be given a number of 0 through 6. This rating system is known as the Breast Imaging Reporting and >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8

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