Mammography isn't a "One Fits All" Technology, Moffitt Cancer Center Pushes for More Personalized Breast Cancer Screenings

A new study is hoping to adjust breast cancer screenings so they can be more personally fit towards each patient.

"Although mammography remains the gold standard for breast cancer screening, there is increasing awareness that there are sub-populations of women for whom mammography is limited because of its reduced sensitivity based on an individual's breast density and other factors," said study lead author Jennifer S. Drukteinis, M.D., assistant member in Moffitt's Department of Diagnostic Imaging.

The writers long-debated regarding a controversial disagreement on mammography screening issues, involving the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force from 2009, where a panel of health care professionals charged with reviewing published research and making health care policy recommendations issued guidelines that women should start having mammograms every two years beginning at age 50. Their recommendation generated great controversy, even outrage, because of a well-established convention recommending mammography screening beginning at 40 and, for those with a first-degree relative with breast cancer, screening should start a decade before that relative's age at diagnosis.

Despite that mammography is an effective tool at detecting breast cancer, the researchers also consider it an imperfect technology because every patient should be examined on a more individual basis

As they point out, the sensitivity of mammography is highly variable, and its effectiveness for women with fatty breast tissue is as high as 98 percent while the effectiveness for women with dense breasts can be as low as 36 percent.

The authors of the study also suggest that for optimal patient care, treatment is more greatly tailored toward various risk factors, including family history, age, genetic profiles and breast density.

Their review "Beyond Mammography: New Frontiers in Breast Cancer Screening" appears in the April 4 issue of The American Journal of Medicine.