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Home > Specialties and Services > Obstetrics & Gynecology > Women's Health |
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Women's Health |
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Mammography |
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A mammogram is an X-ray test of the breasts (mammary glands) used to screen for breast problems, such as a lump, and whether a lump is fluid-filled (a cyst) or a solid mass.
A mammogram is done to help screen for or detect breast cancer. Many small tumors can be seen on a mammogram before they can be felt by a woman or her health professional. Cancer is most easily treated and cured when it is discovered in an early stage. Mammograms do not prevent breast cancer or reduce a woman's risk of developing cancer. However, regular mammograms can reduce a woman's risk of dying from breast cancer by detecting a cancer when it is more easily treated.
Experts have different recommendations for how often you should have a mammogram.1
- For women older than age 50, regular mammograms (every 1 to 2 years) are recommended.
- For women between the ages of 40 and 50, the benefits of mammogram are not as clear. Talk with your health professional to determine when to start and how often to have a mammogram. Most organizations recommend that women have their first mammogram at age 40.
- Your health professional may recommend testing more often if you have risk factors for breast cancer. Any woman with a personal or family history of breast cancer is recommended to have yearly mammograms.
Why It Is Done
A mammogram is done to:
- Screen for breast cancer in women without symptoms.
- Detect breast cancer in women with symptoms. Symptoms of breast cancer may include a lump or thickening in the breast, nipple discharge, or dimpling of the skin on one area of the breast.
- Locate an area of suspicious breast tissue to remove for examination under a microscope (biopsy) when an abnormality is found.
Digital Mammography
A mammogram technique called digital mammogram allows your health professional to view different parts of the breast without taking additional images. Digital mammograms have the same overall accuracy as standard mammograms, but they are more accurate for screening women under age 50 and for women with very dense breast tissue. The procedure in which a digital mammogram is done is the same as a standard mammogram; each procedure takes about the same amount of time and breast compression is needed for both. Images from digital mammogram can be magnified and stored electronically more easily than images from a standard mammogram. |
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