MRI & Breast Cancer
October 18, 2007
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. While it's well-known that early detection can be the difference between life and death, finding cancer early can be difficult. UT Health Center's, Dr. Barbara Huggins, explores the technology that may help.
Other than skin cancer, breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women in the United States. It is also the second leading cause of cancer-related death among women in the U.S. The National Cancer Institute estimates that 178,480 new cases of breast cancer in women, and 2,030 new cases of breast cancer in men will be diagnosed in 2007.
Common Symptoms of Breast Cancer:
Keep in mind that everyone is different and you may have none of these signs and symptoms.
- A lump in the breast or underarm
- Thickening in or near the breast or in the underarm area
- Dimpling or irritation of breast skin
- Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast
- Pulling in of the nipple or pain in nipple area
- Any change in the size or the shape of the breast
- Pain in any area of the breast
- Breast self-exam - check your own breasts for lumps, changes in size or shape of breast.
- Learn how to perform a self exam
- Clinic breast exam - an examination by your health care provider
- Mammogram considered to be the gold standard of breast cancer medication, is a low-dose x-ray that examines breast tissue and helps detect breast cancer at an early stage. Mammograms account for up to 65% of the decline in US deaths from breast cancer between 1975 and 2000.
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) - allows a radiologist to look at breast tissue in more detail. The MRI is more accurate than mammography in diagnosing early stages of breast cancer. Approximately 1.4 million women at high risk could benefit from MRI screening.
Every woman should perform monthly breast self-exams. All women should receive a yearly breast exam by a health care provider. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and the American Cancer Society recommends that women aged 40 and over have a mammogram every year. The American Cancer Society recommends adding a MRI to mammography for women who are at high risk for breast cancer, those who already have cancer in one breast, or have a family history of breast cancer.
Thanks to better and earlier detection and improved treatment, death rates from breast cancer are actually decreasing. Breast cancer is a disease that can be treated and cured. Early detection is the key!
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