Home Resources Research Dense Breast Tissue Mammographic Sensitivy for Breast Cancer Declines Significantly With Increasing Breast Density

Mammographic Sensitivy for Breast Cancer Declines Significantly With Increasing Breast Density

October, 2002

Screening mammograms are less accurate in women with dense breasts. Supplementing mammography with ultrasound markedly increases cancer detection in women with dense breasts a study in Radiology, October 2002 by lead investigator Thomas M. Kolb, M.D. reports.

Thomas Kolb, a New York City Radiologist and his co-authors report the results of 27,825 consecutive individual screening sessions performed on 11,130 women who has no signs or symptoms of breast cancer. The additional screening ultrasound increased the number of women with non palpable invasive cancers by 42 percent. "While ultrasound found 98 percent of cancers in fatty breasts, it found only 48 percent in women with the densest breasts. The largest number of cancers found only by ultrasound in these women was small (70 percent were smaller than 1cm), " reports Dr. Kolb.

"It is the combination of mammography plus ultrasound that is most effective," said Dr. Kolb.

You can read the abstract of the study here.

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Are You Dense? Fact #1:
Breast density is one of the strongest predictors of the failure of mammography screening to detect cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #2:
Two-thirds of pre-menopausal women and 40% of post-menopausal women have dense breast tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #3:
Adding more sensitive tests to mammography significantly increase detection of invasive cancers that are small and node negative.
Are You Dense? Fact #4:
American College of Radiology describes women with "Dense Breast Tissue" as having a higher than average risk of Breast Cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #5:
While a mammogram detects 98% of cancers in women with fatty breasts, it finds only 48% in women with dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #6:
A woman at average risk and a woman at high risk have an EQUAL chance of having their cancer masked by mammogram.
Are You Dense? Fact #7:
Women with dense breasts who had breast cancer have a four times higher risk of recurrence than women with less-dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #8:
A substantial proportion of Breast Cancer can be attributed to high breast density alone.
Are You Dense? Fact #9:
Cancer turns up five times more often in women with extremely dense breasts than those with the most fatty tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #10
There are too many women who are unaware of their breast density, believe their “Happy Gram” when it reports no significant findings and are at risk of receiving a later stage cancer diagnosis.