• Diagnoses are made earlier due to advanced screening mammography and our ability to detect cancer at earlier stages.
• Breast ultrasound
• Diagnostic mammogram
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
• Biopsy

If breast cancer is diagnosed, other tests are done to find out if cancer cells have spread within the breast or to other parts of the body, in a process called staging. The type and stage of breast cancer lets the doctor know what kind of treatment you need.

• Mammogram screening recommendations vary from different government-sponsored groups and medical societies. We understand that this can become confusing when making personal decisions. We recommend the following screening strategy for average-risk women:
• Women under 40– Mammogram not generally recommended.
• Women age 40 to 49– While our bias is to recommend annual mammogram screening in this age group, we suggest women discuss their individual health with their health care provider.
• Women age 50 and older- Annual or biannual mammogram should continue as long as the patient has an estimated life expectancy of 10 years or more.

Saint Vincent Medical Group will refer patients for mammography services.

There is a familial risk, meaning that there is an increase in risk if one has family members, especially a first-degree relative such as a sister or mother, with breast cancer. This is likely due to multiple low penetrant genes that increase risk as well as environmental factors. A small proportion of breast cancers (five to 10 percent) are due to hereditary risk in which a genetic mutation leaves the person at a much higher risk of developing breast cancer.

Breast density describes the ability of the x-ray to penetrate the breast and give resolution on a mammogram. Dense breast tissue can limit the sensitivity of mammography. Young women often have dense breast tissue. As one ages, the breast tissue often is replaced more by fatty tissue and the breast becomes less dense. Then, the mammogram is more sensitive to finding breast lesions. Digital mammography and MRI are options.

No, the use of chemotherapy is determined case by case.

No, a lump in the breast is not always cancer but should always be reviewed and examined by one's physician.

These are two genes that make up the majority of Breast Ovary Syndrome. If one inherits from one's mother or father a mutant brca1 or 2 gene, she will have a higher lifetime risk of cancer, including early onset breast cancer, ovarian cancer and possibly other cancers. Mutations in these genes are responsible for 5 to 10 percent of breast cancer.