Dear Women's Imaging Insider,
Breast density and its connection to cancer risk has been under debate since at least 2009, when the state of Connecticut passed a law requiring breast density status to be disclosed to patients in mammography reports. Now 12 other states have passed similar legislation, and a federal bill is in the works as well.
On the clinical side, researchers have explored the association between mammographic density and breast cancer -- with inconsistent results. In this issue's Insider Exclusive, we're highlighting a study published in Breast Cancer Research that adds more data to the discussion: Researchers found that high mammographic density may play an important role in tumor aggressiveness, especially in younger women. Click here to read more.
After you've finished that article, check out what else is going on in the Women's Imaging Digital Community:
- The use of breast MRI has grown. But does it benefit the right women?
- European researchers believe that targeted radiotherapy could be a feasible alternative to patients having to undergo daily radiotherapy sessions for weeks after breast cancer surgery.
- Full-field digital mammography finds more high-risk lesions, but Dr. Colleen Neal of the University of Michigan and colleagues aren't convinced that's a good thing.
- Discover why Dr. Adedayo Onitilo from Marshfield Clinic Weston Center believes that when women skip a mammography screening exam -- even for just one year -- their risk of late-stage cancer increases.
- Find out why breast density readings taken at CT could provide a readily available and more uniform option for assessing breast cancer risk.
As always, if you have a comment, report, or article idea to share about any aspect of women's imaging, I invite you to contact me.
