|  Digital Mammography
Breast Ultrasound
Breast MRI
Breast Biopsy
Breast Cyst Aspiration
Needle Localization
PET Breast Cancer Staging and Re-Staging
Breast Health Information
What if I have a lump I can feel?
If you feel/have a thickening, swelling, pain, nipple discharge
or retraction (the nipple or skin being pulled in), don't panic. The
development of symptoms does not automatically mean that you have cancer.
About 70 to 80 percent of breast biopsies result in a benign (non-cancerous)
diagnosis.
However, you should always let your healthcare provider know
if you develop any symptoms involving your underarms or
breasts so that she or he may order the most appropriate test. Your healthcare
provider
may recommend a diagnostic mammogram, as opposed to a screening
mammogram, and/or a breast ultrasound examination to gather information.
Here are the answers to some of the questions you may have about screening
for breast cancer, TRA and the American Cancer Society (ACS) recommendations:
Who
should have a breast MRI with their mammogram?
The American Cancer Society states that certain women with
an especially high risk of developing breast cancer should
get magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans along with their yearly mammogram.
Women who are considered to be at especially high risk meet
at least one of the following conditions:
- They have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation
- They have a first-degree relative (parent, sibling or child)
with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation, even if they have yet
to be tested themselves
- Their lifetime risk of breast cancer has been scored at 20%-25%
or greater, based on one of several accepted risk assessment
tools that look at family history and other factors
- They had radiation treatments to the chest between the ages
of 10 and 30 for Hodgkin’s Disease or similar cancer
- They have Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Cowden syndrome, or Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba
syndrome, or may have one of these syndromes based
on a history in a first-degree relative
How do I know if I have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation?
This requires a genetic test and it is something you should
discuss with your healthcare provider.
Does TRA already offer breast MRI?
Yes. TRA has offered breast MRI for several years. TRA also
offers MR-guided breast biopsy for patients where it is appropriate.
Does a breast MRI require a referral? Will it be covered
by my insurance?
Unlike screening mammography, a breast MRI (in conjunction
with an annual mammogram) will require a referral from your
physician or healthcare practitioner. As of this writing
(4/07), it is premature
to predict what insurance coverage will be for this exam,
however we anticipate that women falling under the new ACS
guidelines will be granted
coverage. TRA’s referral coordinators are available to work with
you and your physician ’s office to coordinate your benefits.
Do TRA radiologists read the mammograms themselves or do
they use computer assisted diagnostics (CAD)?
Actually both. Here ’s why:
- The radiology physicians who read mammograms at TRA are dedicated
mammography experts. This means that the vast majority
of the exams they interpret are mammograms. A full time TRA mammographer “reads” more
than 5,000 exams per year.
- TRA uses all digital mammography interpreted by the mammographer
and supplements this with CAD. At TRA, each mammogram is
studied by the radiologist for abnormalities. Only when the initial
review of the images
is complete does the radiologist employ the CAD. The CAD
marks additional areas for the radiologist to pay close attention
to. Most of these structures
are normal, but occasionally CAD will draw the radiologist’s
attention to another area that may be clinically significant.
With regard to the New England Journal of Medicine study
that questions the accuracy of CAD, the mammographers at
TRA, like mammographers in radiology practices around the
country, will carefully evaluate the
study results before making any changes regarding the use
of CAD. The study data was gathered when CAD first came out,
between 1998 and 2002
and improvements have been made in several areas since this
time. Numerous other studies have shown an increased detection
of early cancers by up
to 30%, including cancers that are not yet invasive.
To summarize, currently at TRA, we stand behind our belief
that best practices for screening mammography begin and end
with dedicated board certified mammographers and great breast
imaging using digital
mammography. CAD was always intended only to augment, never
to replace the expert mammography physician.
We’re committed to your breast health!
At TRA, we have invested our resources in both highly trained
medical professionals and the latest technology—including digital
mammography and breast MRI—in order to offer our patients the very
best in breast health care. As radiologists, we regularly consult with
physicians and other healthcare practitioners regarding their patients’ care.
If you have further questions, we encourage you to visit the American
Cancer Society website or speak with your healthcare provider. |
