The Mandate You’ve Never Heard Of But Should…
38 of 50 states have a mandate that requires health care providers to notify women if they have dense breast tissue.
Alabama is one of those 38.
Nearly 100% of women have dense breast tissue under the age of 40.
40-50% of women continue to have dense breast tissue after the age of 40.
Why does the density of breast tissue matter?
I'll quote directly from the Alabama mandate.
"Your mammogram shows that your breast tissue is dense. Dense breast tissue is very common and is not abnormal. However, dense breast tissue may make it harder to find cancer on a mammogram and may also be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. This information about the result of your mammogram is given to you to raise your awareness. Use this information to talk to your doctor about your own risks for breast cancer. At that time, ask your doctor if more screening tests might be useful, based on your risk. A report of your results was sent to your physician."
I know that is a lot to read but it is crucial that women understand the density of their breasts directly impact the accuracy of their mammogram and their risk of breast cancer.
If I could summarize it is basically saying that your density places you at elevated risk AND this test may not be accurate.
That should be alarming.
Although a large majority of women have dense breasts, I find the majority of them have not been made aware that additional screening is almost always necessary to accurately assess their breast health.
Thermography is a valuable and sensitive tool that can help shed light on the health of your breast tissue even if you have dense breasts.
Thermography is not affected by dense tissue, implants, reductions, or mastectomies.
This makes thermography one of the most irreplaceable methods for women who fall into one or more of those categories.
If you happen to be one of these ladies please give us a call or schedule an appointment so that we can discuss how thermography might be able to benefit you.
