Dear AuntMinnie Member,
If at first you don't succeed, try again. That could be the motto of a group of breast density notification proponents, who are making another run at passing legislation in California after a failed effort in 2011.
The California Senate this week passed a bill that would require healthcare providers to notify women who have dense breast tissue of their status. Dense breast tissue is known to confound traditional x-ray mammography, and women with denser tissue are at higher risk of cancer. Other imaging modalities, such as ultrasound, are frequently employed for these women.
California wouldn't be the first state to pass such a law, but it would be the biggest. Breast density notification advocates hope that if the Golden State adopts such legislation, others may follow. But they'll have to figure out a way to bring Gov. Jerry Brown to their side, as he vetoed a largely identical bill last year.
Learn more by clicking here, or visit our Women's Imaging Digital Community at women.auntminnie.com.
iPad tackles ER studies
In other news, researchers from Singapore have found that the iPad can be a good option for reading MRI and CT cases after-hours in situations where a PACS workstation isn't available, according to a story in our Advanced Visualization Digital Community.
The study examined the discrepancy rates between radiologists using iPads and those using regular PACS workstations, and found that there really wasn't that much difference between the two. The researchers did recommend improvements in the iPad's user interface for image interpretation. Read the story by clicking here.
While you're in the community, also check out a new story on work at the U.S. National Institutes of Health to develop computer-aided detection software for detecting abnormal liver enlargement, or hepatomegaly. The researchers believe the software could help identify hepatomegaly earlier. Learn more by clicking here, or visit the community at av.auntminnie.com.
