Risk factors to be considered for detection of breast cancer

Risk factors to take into account for breast cancer detection

In a recent study, the outcomes of this additional screening were evaluated to determine its benefits and drawbacks for patients in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, which was just published online by Wiley.

N. JERSEY Breast tissue that is thick and contains more fibrous than fatty tissue is one of the risk factors for breast cancer. It is also more difficult to detect cancer on mammography in breast tissue that is dense. In order to better detect cancer, many jurisdictions now have laws requiring mammograms to alert women with large breasts so they can choose whether to get extra ultrasound tests. This additional screening's outcomes were evaluated to determine its advantages and drawbacks for patients in a recently completed study

published online by Wiley in the peer-reviewed American Cancer Society journal CANCER. Although supplemental ultrasound screening may find breast malignancies that mammography missed, it requires additional imaging and could result in breast biopsies that are not indicated in healthy women. Therefore, it's crucial to only utilise supplemental ultrasonography in women who are at a high risk for mammography screening failure, or women whose mammograms reveal no symptoms of disease but who nonetheless go on to acquire breast cancer. Between 2014 and 2020 at 32 U.S. imaging centres, Brian Sprague, PhD, of the University of Vermont Cancer Centre, and his colleagues assessed 38,166 additional ultrasounds and 825,360 screening mammograms without further ultrasounds. registries of the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium's three regional facilities. The group discovered that 95.3% of additional ultrasounds were done on women who had thick breasts. In contrast, 41.8% of mammograms were conducted on women with thick breasts without any extra screening. When it came to women with thick breasts, 23.7% of those who got ultrasounds had a high probability of developing interval invasive breast cancer, as opposed to 18.5% of those who just had mammograms. According to the data, women with thick breasts were specifically targeted for ultrasound screening, yet only a small percentage of these women were at a high risk of mammography screening failure. Women who solely had mammograms were at high risk of mammography screening failure in a similar proportion .ladies who have thick breasts

According to Dr. Sprague, women who underwent ultrasound screening had comparable risk profiles to those who underwent mammography screening alone. In other words, while having dense breasts, many women at low risk of breast cancer got ultrasound screening, many women at high risk underwent mammography alone without further screening. Beyond breast density, clinicians can take into account other risk factors for breast cancer to pinpoint women who would benefit from additional ultrasound screening. There are publicly accessible risk calculators from the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium that take age, family history, and other factors into account.

Dense breast tissue: Women with dense breast tissue, which has a higher percentage of fibrous tissue than fat, have an increased risk of developing breast cancer. Dense breast tissue also makes it more challenging to detect cancer on mammography.

Mammography screening failure: Some women may develop breast cancer even after a mammogram shows no signs of malignancy. These cases are known as interval invasive breast cancers and indicate a failure of mammography screening to detect the cancer.

Supplemental ultrasound screening: Additional ultrasound screening can be performed to improve the detection of breast cancer, especially in women with dense breasts who are at a higher risk of mammography screening failure. However, it is important to note that ultrasound screening may lead to unnecessary breast biopsies among women who do not have breast cancer.

Targeting ultrasound screening: The study mentioned in the passage found that while ultrasound screening was highly targeted to women with dense breasts, only a modest proportion of these women were at high risk of mammography screening failure. This suggests that there is room for improvement in identifying women who are most likely to benefit from supplemental ultrasound screening.

Other risk factors: Breast cancer risk assessment should not solely rely on breast density. Other factors such as age, family history, and additional risk calculators can be considered to identify women who may be appropriate for supplemental ultrasound screening.

Overall, a comprehensive approach that takes into account multiple risk factors, including breast density, can help in the detection and screening of breast cancer. It is important for clinicians to evaluate individual risk profiles and consider appropriate screening strategies based on the available evidence and guidelines.