Breast cancer is the most common cancer among American women, except for skin cancer.
Limiting the use of alcohol, exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy body weight can help prevent breast cancer.
Mammograms, clinical breast exams (done during your annual physical) and periodic breast self-exams can help detect breast cancer early, when it is most curable.
Facing a breast cancer diagnosis is difficult. That is why we encourage women to ask many questions—and even get second opinions—about their breast care.
Early breast cancer symptoms usually are easily noticed. That's why annual clinical breast exams and mammograms are so important.
Periodic self-exams help you learn how your breasts normally feel. You will be able to tell if you find a change such as:
a lump or swelling
skin irritation or dimpling
nipple pain
a change in the shape of the breast, such as a nipple that turns inward
redness or scaliness
nipple discharge (not breast milk)
If you notice any of these changes, call your health care provider. Most of the time, these changes are not cancer. But sometimes they can be breast cancer symptoms.
If you do not know how to do a breast lump self exam, ask your health care provider to show you.
If a screening result is abnormal, you need to have more tests to find out if it's breast cancer.
Breast MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) uses powerful magnets and radio waves to get a more detailed view of a breast lump than you'd get with a mammogram.
Breast ultrasound uses ultrasonic sound waves (sounds that cannot be heard by humans) to show a detailed image of breast tisue.
Breast biopsy takes a sample of breast tissue to test for breast cancer or other problems.
Image-guided needle breast biopsy is done by a radiologist, who uses mammography or ultrasound to see pictures of the breast. If an abnormality is seen, a special needle is used to take samples of the breast tissue for further testing.
Source:Allina Patient Education, Mammograms, Clinical Breast Exams and Self-exams, rad-ahc-14066 (3/08); American Cancer Society; "Types of Breast Biopsies" by Tammy Fox, MD, and Diane Stoller, MD, Piper Breast Center Communiqué, winter 2003; National Cancer Institute Reviewed by: Timothy Sielaff, MD, PhD, FACS, president, Virginia Piper Cancer Institute; Carol Bergen, RN, manager, Piper Breast Center; Deborah Day, MD, medical director, Piper Breast Center First Published: 08/25/2009 Last Reviewed: 08/25/2009
Starting at age 40, most women should have a mammogram every year. This will help catch breast cancer early on, when it's most curable.
A mammogram is a low-dose X-ray picture of your breast. The exam involves compressing your breasts between two panels for a few seconds so the X-ray can get a clear image of your breast tissue. You will feel pressure.
Your mammogram images will be taken in one of two ways:
analog (on film): Images are created on film. The film is eveloped and the radiologist (doctor of X-ray) studies the film on a special light box.
digital: Images are captured and sent to a computer. The radiologist studies the images on a high-resolution computer screen.
Both ways are safe, accurate and provide reliable results
Although mammograms are proven to find breast cancer in early stages, about 10% of cancers do not show up on mammograms.
Digital mammography: Is it better than regular mammograms?
A woman getting a mammogram probably will not notice a difference between digital mammography and analog (on film) breast cancer screening.
The main difference between a digital and film mammogram is in how images are taken and displayed. Digital pictures do not go to film that must be developed before they can be seen. Instead, they're taken by a computer and electronically sent to a screen, where a radiologist can interpret (read) them.
Digital mammograms offer radiologists the option to magnify, brighten or darken images so that they can better see possible tumors and verify whether they could be breast cancer. However, if you have a film mammogram, you can feel confident that the radiologist will have clear, complete images to read.
Digital mammography has been available since 1996. Early studies suggest that digital mammograms may be more effective in detecting breast cancer in women younger than age 50, women who have not gone through menopause, and women who have dense (thick) breast tissue.
Digital mammography locations
Although the number of digital mammography units at clinics and hospitals is growing throughout the United States, film mammograms are more widely available.
Source:Allina Patient Education, Mammograms, Clinical Breast Exams and Self-exams, rad-ahc-14066 (3/08); American Cancer Society; "Digital Mammography – Is it better?" by Deborah L. Day, MD, Piper Breast Center Communiqué, winter/spring 2006; American College of Radiology Reviewed by: Timothy Sielaff, MD, PhD, FACS, president, Virginia Piper Cancer Institute; Carol Bergen, RN, manager, Piper Breast Center; Deborah Day, MD, medical director, Piper Breast Center First Published: 08/25/2009 Last Reviewed: 08/25/2009
Need a mammogram?
Check with your insurance provider to see if the mammogram will be covered. Your health care provider's recommendation for services does not guarantee coverage by your insurance provider.
Our clinics and hospitals participate in the Minnesota Department of Health's Sage Screening Program. The effort offers free mammograms to uninsured and underinsured women.
Mary Rinehart, radiology technician and mammography lead at Allina Medical Clinic – Woodlake, helps to position a woman who is having a mammogram.
They might enter the clinic in fear. But after a mammogram by Leann McMullen, women often say, "Oh, that wan't so bad."
"Many patients come in fearful because they've heard horror stories about mammograms," says McMullen. "But it shouldn't be a horrible experience. It is very important to listen to patients and help them feel at ease."
That's what the radiology coordinator and her colleagues try to do as they perform an average of 380 mammograms a month at Allina Medical Clinic-Coon Rapids.
Catching breast cancer early
A mammogram is an x-ray examination of the breast in a woman with no breast complaints. It's meant to find cancer when it is too small to be felt by the woman or her doctor.
Early detection improves one's ability to overcome breast cancer, the second leading cause of cancer death in women (after lung cancer).
A screening mammogram usually involves four views: a front and a side of each breast. For each view, the breast is squeezed between two plates to spread the tissue apart and allow a low dose of radiation.
"There is a moment of discomfort. It is tight, but then it's done. The total amount of compression time is 40 to 50 seconds for all four views," says McMullen, who personally receives a mammogram each year.
Try to schedule your mammogram after your menstrual period. This is the time when your breasts are less likely to be swollen and tender.
If caffeine makes your breast sensitive or tender, do not eat or drink caffeine a few days before the mammogram.
If you have had mammograms at other clinics or hospitals in the last 10 years, bring the films and their reports with you. Or, you may have them mailed to the clinic. By comparing your new mammogram to old ones, a radiologist can see if your breast tissue has changed.
Bring the name, address and phone number of your health care provider if he or she is not on staff at this clinic. The results of your mammogram will be sent to your provider.
Wear a two-piece outfit to your mammography appointment. You will have to remove your clothes from the waist up and put on a hospital gown.
If possible wait until after your mammogram to put on deodorant, powder or lotion.
After a mammogram, you may see some redness or bruising around your breast.
If your breasts feel tender, you may take acetaminophen (Tylenol®) or ibuprofen (Advil®) for 1 or 2 days. Take as directed.
In most cases, you will receive your results in about 1 week.
A radiologist will interpret (read) your mammogram. He or she will compare this one with your other mammograms. The radiologist will send the results to your health care provider.
You may be asked to come back for more X-rays. This means the radiologist may want a more detailed view of a specific area of the breast. A "call back" does not mean you have cancer or that the mammogram was not done correctly.
Source:Allina Patient Education, Mammograms, Clinical Breast Exams and Self-exams, rad-ahc-14066 (3/08); American Cancer Society; Leann McMullen, radiology coordinator, Allina Medical Clinic-Coon Rapids Reviewed by: Timothy Sielaff, MD, PhD, FACS, president, Virginia Piper Cancer Institute; Carol Bergen, RN, manager, Piper Breast Center; Deborah Day, MD, medical director, Piper Breast Center First Published: 10/06/2003 Last Reviewed: 08/25/2009
Breast cancer signs: What breast cancer symptoms should I watch for?
