Breast Care

The American College of Radiology recommends annual mammograms for women aged 40 and older.

Starting at age 20, women should have a clinical breast exam by a health professional every three years. Starting at age 40, women should have a CBE by a health professional annually. 

Regular breast self-examinations are recommended for women starting in their 20s. Ask your doctor about the benefits and limitations of BSE. Report any breast changes to your health professional right away. If you have questions about how to do breast self-exam, call any one of our women's services locations. 

Because mammography is a preventative screening, it’s covered by most insurance companies. The exam itself is a low-dose X-ray of your breast. The radiation risk -comparable to spending four hours in the sun - is minimal compared to the risk of death from not detecting breast cancer early.

Female radiological technologists who have received specialized training and certification perform mammogram exams and breast ultrasounds. They also assist board-certified breast radiologists with ultrasound and stereotactic biopsies.

During your mammogram, you’ll stand in front of a mammography machine. One breast will be placed on the X-ray plate. In order to position your breast for optimal imaging, the technologist may examine and/or palpate your breast before placing it on the plate. An adhesive marker will be applied to any moles, scars or other spots that might interfere with the breast image.

A separate flat plate, often made of plastic, will be brought down on top of the breast to compress it gently against the X-ray plate. The technologist compresses your breast to decrease motion and to make the layer of breast tissue thinner. This allows for reduced X-ray exposure and sharpens the image. A minimum of two pictures from different angles will be taken of each breast. This requires the repositioning of your breast between images.

Your latest mammogram images will be carefully compared to those from any past exams. The radiologist will send a report about your mammogram to your physician, and will notify you of the results by mail.

If you’re at an increased risk of developing breast cancer, you may be eligible for a screening breast MRI in addition to your routine screening mammogram.

If you have received your second COVID-19 vaccine shot, please wait four to six weeks to schedule your mammogram.

When a breast has more tissue and glands than fat, it’s considered to be dense.
About 40% of women have dense breast tissue. When a breast has more tissue and glands than fat, it’s considered to be dense.

Breast density is diagnosed by a radiologist after examining your mammogram images. The American College of Radiology says patients with dense breast tissue have a higher than average risk of breast cancer. And breast cancer survivors with dense breasts are four times more likely to have a recurrence than those with less-dense breasts.

In addition to increasing the risk of cancer by four to six times, dense breast tissue also makes finding suspicious lumps using mammography difficult. Mammograms only identify 48% of cancers in dense breasts.

We’ve added an automated breast ultrasound to our clinic to help detect lumps hidden in dense tissue, which could be missed by mammography.

Speak to your health care provider to learn if you have dense breast tissue and if you would benefit from an automated breast ultrasound. Insurance coverage varies depending on your insurance. To learn your out-of-pocket costs, call your insurance provider.