Breast Cancer Awareness Month
October marks Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM) (also referred
to locally as
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM))
which is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities to increase awareness of the
disease and to raise funds for research into its cause, prevention and cure. The
campaign also offers information and support to those affected by breast cancer.
As well as providing a platform for breast cancer charities to raise awareness of
their work and of the disease, BCAM is also a prime opportunity to remind women
to be breast aware for earlier detection.
What is Breast Cancer?
Breast
cancer is a
cancer that starts in the cells of the breast in women and men. Worldwide, breast cancer
is the second most common type of cancer after lung cancer (10.4% of all cancer incidence, both sexes
counted)
and the fifth most common cause of cancer death. In 2005, breast cancer
caused 502,000 deaths worldwide (7% of cancer deaths; almost 1% of all deaths).
Because the breast is composed of identical tissues in males and females, breast
cancer also occurs in males. Incidences of breast cancer in men are approximately
100 times less common than in women, but men with breast cancer are considered to
have the same statistical survival rates as women.
This year, an estimated 182,460 women will hear their doctors say, "You have
breast cancer." More than 40,000 women will die from the disease.
The American Cancer Society now recommends
annual breast MRI in addition to annual
mammography for women at high risk for breast cancer based on their
family or personal history. If your calculated lifetime risk is over 15%, speak
with your doctor about breast MRI.
How Can I Find Out My Risk of Breast Cancer?
There are multiple web-based resources that can help you calculate your risk for
breast cancer; you can evaluate your risk by clicking the pink ribbon below. Here
is a guide to web-based risk assessment tools for your convince:
U.S. National Institutes
of Health Gail Model
This is the most widely used method, but will underestimate your risk if you have
multiple family members with breast cancer and/or family history of ovarian cancer.
National
Breast and Ovarian Cancer Center (NBOCC)
Australia's independent national authority and information source on breast cancer
and ovarian cancer. This government sponsored source provides the most complete
risk assessment tool we have encountered anywhere, taking into account full family
history, ovarian cancer and other factors.
This is a privately sponsored site with a very friendly and easy risk management
tool, but will also underestimate risk for women with family histories that include
ovarian cancer.
Where Should I Recieve my Breast Cancer Screening?
Imaging Healthcare Specialists provides the latest full-field digital
mammography with computer-aided diagnosis at all our breast imaging sites such as:
breast ultrasound, breast MRI, stereotaxic breast biopsy, ultrasound, ductography
and pre-operative hookwire localization procedures. We also provide the full-range
of other women's imaging, such as pelvic ultrasound, pelvic MRI, Spiral CT, PET/CT,
hysterosalpingography, hysterosonography, nuclear imaging, cardiac screening and
osteoporosis screening.
IHS has 15 convenient locations,
sub-specialized radiologists, exceptional customer service and lower prices compared
to hospitals and other centers. Imaging Healthcare also provides a wide array of
imaging services to address all of your medical imaging requirements. Through the
availability of online images and reports, your physician is able to quickly access
the information needed to make the decisions necessary for prompt, effective treatment.
IHS can provide all of your medical imaging needs in a prompt, safe, accurate, comfortable
manner.
To schedule your breast cancer screening call Imaging Healthcare at 866.558.4320
to schedule your exam. If you are overdue for your screening mammogram, you
can call to schedule your exam as well, as long as you can provide us the name of
your doctor. If you are having breast symptoms, or think you have a lump,
speak with your doctor immediately, before scheduling any imaging exam.
