When it comes to mammography, if you've been to the hospital for a breast exam, you may be no stranger to it. But if you only have a breast ultrasound (ultrasound) test, you may be a little confused.
This test is very important for women's breast health, I hope that every girl can understand its importance, today Zhimei will come to talk about it.
Mammography is a method of breast photography with low-dose X-rays[1].
That is, X-ray examination of the breast, which can clearly show the layers of breast tissue, is dedicated to screening breast tumors, and is an effective means of early detection of breast cancer [2].
Due to the relative complexity of report interpretation, the long examination time, the high cost, the certain radiation and the poor comfort during the examination, the popularity of breast molybdenum examination is far less than that of ultrasonography.
In fact, many studies have shown that molybdenum screening can detect breast cancer in time, thereby reducing mortality [3,4].
First of all, Zhimei wants to emphasize that there is no one examination method that is perfect at present, each examination method has its own advantages and disadvantages, and molybdenum and ultrasound are the "golden partners" for finding breast cancer.
Dense mammary glands are mammary glands that are predominantly glandular and have less fat content. These mammary glands appear to have a high background density on molybdenum and are difficult to detect in time by the molybdenum target if they are microscopic lesions [6].
Most Chinese women, especially young women, belong to the dense breast, so it is usually recommended to start a molybdenum scan after the age of 40, and young women can do ultrasound examination.
How do I tell if I need to do a molybdenum test? I believe you will have similar confusion. In fact, you only need to ask yourself the following questions to help you make a preliminary judgment.
1
Be over 40 years old
Age is closely related to the risk of breast cancer, especially women over 40 years old are recommended to have a molybdenum physical examination once a year as a screening for breast cancer.
2
Have suffered from breast-related diseases
Women who have previously had breast cancer, breast fibroma, or ductal mastoma, or have a high risk factor for breast cancer. Molybdenum can be used before the age of 40 for breast cancer screening.
3
There is a family history of breast cancer
If an immediate family member has suffered from breast cancer, it is a high-risk group of breast cancer, and it is necessary to start regular breast examinations as soon as possible according to the doctor's advice.
4
The first menstrual period is earlier than 12 years old
Women who have an early menarche age (especially before the age of 12) have a higher risk of breast cancer than the average person. Early start of breast cancer screening is recommended.
5
Women who have not given birth or whose first child is later than 35 years of age
If the first child is before the age of 30, the risk of breast cancer may be reduced, but the risk of breast cancer will increase after the age of 35.
In addition, breastfeeding normally can also reduce the risk of breast cancer.
The above 2-5 points, if any of them are met, it is recommended that you start breast cancer screening as soon as possible according to the doctor's instructions, and if necessary, you can perform a molybdenum scan.
However, Zhimei also reminds everyone not to conduct molybdenum target examination too frequently because of fear of getting sick, which will do more harm than good.
If you are a woman over the age of 40 or with a high risk factor for breast cancer, a molybdenum screening once a year is sufficient.
Routine molybdenum screening is not recommended for women under 40 years of age who do not have a risk factor for breast cancer.
In addition, if you are in a special stage such as pregnancy preparation and pregnancy, it is best not to perform a molybdenum target examination, and if you must do a breast examination, breast ultrasound is the first choice.
I hope that your future physical examination reports reading here are excellent, and everyone can stay away from diseases and live a healthy life.
Reviewer
Cheng Lin | Chief Physician of Breast Center, Peking University People's Hospital
bibliography
[1] McLelland R, Hendrick RE, Zinninger MD, et al. The American college of radiology mammography accreditation program. Am J Roentgenol. 1991;157:497.
[2] Tabar L, Yen AM, Wu WY, et al. Insights from the breast cancer screening trials: how screening affects the natural history of breast cancer and implications for evaluating service screening programs. Breast J. 2015;21:13–20.
[3] Nickson C, Mason KE, English DR, Kavanagh AM. Mammographic screening and breast cancer mortality: a case-control study and meta-analysis. Cancer Epidemiol Biomark Prev. 2012;21:1479–88.
[4] Broeders M, Moss S, Nystrom L, et al. The impact of mammographic screening on breast cancer mortality in Europe: a review of observational studies. J Med Screen. 2012;19(suppl 1):14–25.
[5] Independent UK. Panel on breast cancer screening. The benefits and harms of breast cancer screening: an independent review. Lancet. 2012;380:1778–86.
[6] Stomper PC, Kopans DB, Sadowsky NL, et al. Is mammography painful? A multicenter patient study. Arch Intern Med. 1988;148:521–4.
Breast Cancer Committee of Chinese Anti-Cancer Association. Guidelines and Norms for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Breast Cancer of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (2019 Edition)[J]. China Oncology,2019,29(8):609-679. DOI:10.19401/j.cnki.1007-3639.2019.08.009.）
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