Mammogram Review

Mammogram screening to detect early breast cancers is a cornerstone of preventive medical care. Physicians who interpret mammogram results are trained to look for dense concentrations of breast tissue, clusters of calcified tissue or skin thickening and asymmetries that occur in one breast but not the other. That said, even the most skilled radiologist cannot make a cancer diagnosis based just on the results of a mammogram, as benign and malignant growths don’t necessarily look different on an X-ray. Instead, when an abnormality is detected via mammogram, further tests will be ordered such as a diagnostic mammogram (which may include computer-aided detection and diagnosis) and/or a breast biopsy in which a tissue sample is collected for close examination under a microscope.