Different Tests for Different Breasts By Carole Goeller
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ammograms alone may miss cancer in dense breasts, yet most women are unaware of their breast density. More than 40 percent of American women have dense breasts, which can increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer by four to six times. It’s a stronger factor in personal risk assessment than family history. You can’t tell by touch, sight or breast size. The only way to know if you have dense breast tissue is by having a mammogram. If you have dense breasts, it simply means your breasts are filled with more fibrous tissue than fat. Dense tissue can hide cancer on a mammogram and may require additional testing.
Many states have enacted legislation to tell women about their breast density; that is, when a woman has a mammogram, by law, the patient must be informed of her breast density and how it pertains to her risk of getting breast cancer. This gives women the opportunity to have additional testing as needed to ensure her imaging results are not only accurate, but as thorough as possible. New Mexico has no such law. Sadly, this often means most New Mexican women are completely unaware of their breast density. Fortunately, there is one facility in the state that has the newest technology Dr. Monica Saini