Early Detection

Why isn't a mammogram enough?

It's no secret that earlier detection leads to more treatment options and more positive outcomes. But there are two things in breast health that aren't often talked about that can cause cancer to go undetected, even with annual mammograms - dense breasts and lobular breast cancer.

Have you ever been informed if you have dense breasts or not? If your annual mammogram is painful, your breasts are likely at least somewhat dense. If you don't know your breast density, it is now mandated by the FDA for your annual screening to provide this information. Check our News Page for more.

Even without dense breasts, lobular breast cancer is not detected by mammograms. Please continue reading below.

Dense Breasts

Cancer is 4-6 times more likely in women with dense breasts than in women with fatty breasts.

Routine mammograms routinely miss early breast cancer in dense breasts.

Breast density is how dense your tissue is. 'Fatty’ is better. The denser the tissue, the more likely you are to be diagnosed with breast cancer.

Dense tissue hides ductal cancer (the most common breast cancer) tumors from mammograms.

They are not ‘seen’ early.

Ultrasound and MRI are more effective for routine screening of dense breasts.

DenseBreast-Info is working hard to change how Dense Breasts are screened.

DenseBreast-Info independent site:

densebreast-info.org

Lobular Breast Cancer

Routine mammograms and ultrasounds are not as effective as MRI at finding the second most common breast cancer.

Lobular Breast Cancer usually looks like lines of cells -- healthy tissue -- to a mammogram or ultrasound.

Typically, it is a thickening -- not a lump -- or nothing felt at all.

Before 1999, doctors knew MRI is the only reliable screening for lobular cancer. About one in a hundred women will be diagnosed with lobular cancer, generally at a later stage and tumor size than NST/Ductal.

They are not ‘seen’ early.

The Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance (LBCA) is working hard to change both how Lobular Cancer is discussed, screened and treated.

LBCA's independent site:

lobularbreastcancer.org