There is good news in the fight against breast cancer. Breast cancer deaths continue to decline, thanks to increased awareness and early detection through regular screening. Research has shown that breast cancer screening with mammography has been found to detect cancer early, when it is most treatable.
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. If you are a woman over 40, talk to your doctor about scheduling your annual mammogram today. Not everyone shares the same risk level. While white women have a slightly higher rate of breast cancer diagnosis, Black women are more likely to die from the disease.
If you're a woman of any age and are at high risk for developing breast cancer, talk to your doctor about when you should start genetic screening, mammograms and risk reducing strategies, such as medications that may reduce your risk of developing breast cancer.
Mammography has great potential to saves lives. Tell your mothers, sisters, daughters and friends to schedule their annual mammograms today.
Breast cancer treatment depends on the stage of the disease, and may include surgery, radiation treatment, chemotherapy or hormone therapy. Discuss treatment options with your doctor.
Additional information and resources:
Mammography Saves Lives
A general information resource on breast imaging from the American College of Radiology (ACR), the Society of Breast Imaging (SBI)
and the American Society of Breast Disease (ASBD):
See the Mammography (www.RadiologyInfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=mammo), Breast Cancer Screening (www.RadiologyInfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=screening-breast), Breast Cancer (www.RadiologyInfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=breast-cancer) disease and Breast Cancer Treatment (www.RadiologyInfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=breast-cancer-therapy) pages for more information and to learn about early detection.