BREAST CANCER SCREENING: CAN MAMMOGRAPHY BE TRUSTED?

The figures vary on the accuracy of mammograms; however, all agree that breast cancer screening through mammography is not 100% accurate. Figures I've read vary from 70% to 90%, but nobody in the medical field believes the procedure detects all breast cancers.

SHOULD I HAVE ANNUAL MAMMOGRAMS?

Yes. Although the procedure does not detect all breast cancers, it detects most breast cancers, and saves many lives. The best anti cancer action is still prevention, or discovering the cancer while it is in a very early stage. Cancers that are discovered before they can be felt through self examination are more likely to be confined to the area of the breast, or maybe even to the breast milk duct. It makes sense to do everything you can to discover any cancer present while it is still in the earliest stage possible.

ARE THERE OTHER METHODS FOR DETECTING BREAST CANCER?

Yes. An MRI is often recommended for those who have a history of breast cancer, or a family history of breast cancer. While MRI screenings sometimes yield false positive results, they often detect breast cancer that is not detected through mammography procedures. My own older sister was recently diagnosed with breast cancer after an MRI screening, after having received false negatives from mammogram screenings annually for many years. Luckily, her cancer had not spread to her lymph nodes; but was 9 mm in size, and believed to have been present for many years, since her type of breast cancer grows very slowly. In this case, submitting to an MRI screening may have saved her life, or the physical stress and emotional pain of harsher treatment.

WHAT ELSE CAN I DO TO PREVENT BREAST CANCER?

Breast cancer is strongly related to obesity. Keeping your weight at the recommended level for your height will make breast cancer less likely. Certain foods such as raw fruits and vegetables eaten together are related to a lower breast cancer risk, as is regular physical exercise 5 or 6 days each week. Decreasing your intake of red meat to 3 or less servings weekly is recommended, and replacing red meat with oily fish such as salmon, will help lower your chances of developing breast cancer. Continue having mammograms annually, and consider MRI screenings as well, if you have a family history of breast cancer, or are on hormone replacement therapy.

CLICK BELOW FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON CANCER PREVENTION:

http://hubpages.com/_2pvzhao591xs4/hub/PREVENT-CANCER-THROUGH-DIET