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Lets Start Screening For Breast Health
In the United States, American women are told to begin annual
mammographic screening for breast cancer at the age of 40. Long
before we've reached this age, we are advised to perform a monthly
breast exam and see our doctors for a clinical breast exam (CBE)
annually as well. However, the detection rate of breast cancer for
CBE is only 47% when the tumors are less than 1 centimeter while
mammography has given us a 70% detection rate. By the time a tumor
is detected by palpation or found mammographically, it has already
been growing and developing for 8-10 years.
Mammography has a high false positive rate. Only 1:6 biopsies
are found to be positive for cancer when performed due to a
positive mammogram or CBE. This places additional stressors on
women who undergo these procedures.
Other risks of mammography include the radiation that each
breast is exposed to during a mammogram. During a chest X-ray, a
person receives 1/1000 of a RAD, or radiation absorbed dose. This
type of X-ray is a high energy X-ray. During a mammogram, however,
the X-ray used is a low energy X-ray and results in 1 RAD or a
1000-fold greater exposure than a simple chest X-ray. It has been
suggested that the low energy X-ray used may cause greater
biological damage which is cumulative over time. In a journal
entitled Radiation Research and published in 2004, the author
concludes that the risks associated with mammography screening may
be FIVE times higher than previously assumed and the risk-benefit
relationship of mammography exposures need to be re-examined.
In 1982, the FDA approved thermography as an adjunctive tool for
breast cancer screening. Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging, also
known as DITI measures heat emitted from the body and is accurate
to 1/100th of a degree. Certified Clinical Thermographers follow
strict guidelines and transmit their scans for interpretation by
board certified thermologists. DITI examines physiology, NOT
structure. It is in this capacity that DITI can monitor breast
HEALTH over time and alert a patient or physician to a developing
problem; possibly before a lump can be seen on X-ray or palpated
clinically. There are no test limitations such as breast density.
Women with cosmetic implants are great candidates for thermography
which emits no radiation and no compression. Contact is never made
during a thermographic scan.
Clinical research studies continue to support thermography's
role as an adjunctive tool in breast cancer screening and the ONLY
tool that measures breast health. There are now more than 800
publications on over 300,000 women in clinical trials. A recent
finding published in the American Journal of Radiology in 2003
showed that thermography has 99% sensitivity in identifying breast
cancer with single examinations and limited views. Scientists
concluded that a negative thermogram is powerful evidence that
cancer is not present.
In conclusion, women need to begin breast health screening
early; as young as age 25. This can provide women with the earliest
possible indication that further investigation is necessary. It
takes approximately 15 years for a breast cancer to form and lead
to death. If "early detection is the best prevention," let's start
using technology that truly allows for the earliest possible alert
to a developing problem.
Thermographic screening is not covered by most insurance
companies but is surprisingly affordable for most people. For more
information or to find a certified clinic in your area, go to
www.proactivehealthonline.com.
Brenda Witt is co-owner of Proactive Health Solutions in
Southern California. She is an American College of Clinical
Thermology (ACCT) certified thermographer in the Orange County
area.
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