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Study Shows When Women with Dense Breasts Need Extra Breast Cancer Screening

Dense breast tissue is a risk factor for breast cancer, but not all women with dense breasts benefit from extra screening. A new study shows who will.

Women who have dense breasts have long been told that this increases their risk of breast cancer and makes it more difficult to detect–a sort of catch-22. Sometimes additional imaging such as an MRI is recommended.

Dense Breast Tissue Is Common

But a new study points out that nearly half of all women have dense breast tissue, and most of them are not at increased risk. So who needs additional screening?

When Extra Screening Is Helpful

The study shows that best results are from screening women who have a high risk of breast cancer in addition to dense breasts. Those with a five year risk of 2.5% or higher as determined by the BCSC (Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium) should discuss additional screening with their doctors.

According to the study, if 694 women received extra tests, one additional cancer would be found.

Annals of Internal Medicine, online May 18, 2015

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About the Author
Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist who has dedicated his career to making drug information understandable to consumers. His best-selling book, The People’s Pharmacy, was published in 1976 and led to a syndicated newspaper column, syndicated public radio show and web site. In 2006, Long Island University awarded him an honorary doctorate as “one of the country's leading drug experts for the consumer.”.
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