By: Angela Sie, M.D., medical director, breast imaging, MemorialCare Breast Center, Long Beach Medical Center
One in eight women will develop breast cancer during their lifetime and 75 percent occurs in women with no family history. However, if detected early breast cancer is very curable.
Screening mammography remains the only screening technology proven to improve breast cancer survival. For optimal benefit, most women should have a baseline mammogram between the ages of 35 and 40, and begin routine screenings at age 40.
Not all breast screenings are equal. The accuracy of a mammogram is based on a combination of the quality of the images and the experience and skill of the radiologist interpreting the study. Surprisingly few mammograms in the U.S. (less than 30 percent) are read by a sub-specialized, dedicated breast radiologist who focuses only on mammography and breast care. Studies have shown that these sub-specialized breast radiologists detect more cancers, more early-stage-cancers and have lower screening recall rates than general radiologists.
All mammograms done at the MemorialCare Breast Center at Long Beach Medical Center are read by female sub-specialized, fully dedicated breast radiologists. This focus and experience results in a higher quality, more accurate mammogram because these are the only types of images the physician is reviewing.
At the MemorialCare Breast Center, the radiologists who are interpreting your exam are 100 percent focused on just that – breast imaging. That means, unlike other centers, they are sub-specialized experts in the field of reviewing breast images.
Most mammograms at Long Beach Medical Center are done using 3D mammography, also called Tomosynthesis. While traditional 2D imaging has to go through the entire breast, the 3-D imaging can examine a cross section of breast tissue – helping to find cancer that might have gone undetected.
The MemorialCare Breast Center at Long Beach Medical Center specializes in the early detection of breast cancer – using state-of-the-art technology and dedicated breast radiologists, for the highest level of breast imaging. For information or to request an appointment online, visit memorialcare.org/LBBreast.