hi everyone:

i just wanted to know if the lumps that are found in a mammogram, are they ALWAYS felt? or was is jsut discovered from an annual check up?

Thanks

Radiation from routine mammography poses significant cumulative risks of initiating and promoting breast cancer. Contrary to conventional assurances that radiation exposure from mammography is trivial— and similar to that from a chest X-ray or spending one week in Denver, about 1/ 1,000 of a rad (radiation-absorbed dose)— the routine practice of taking FOUR films for each breast results in some 1,000-fold greater exposure, 1 rad, focused on each breast rather than the entire chest. Thus, premenopausal women undergoing annual screening over a ten-year period are exposed to a total of about 10 rads for each breast!!! As emphasized some three decades ago, the premenopausal breast is highly SENSITIVE to radiation, each rad of exposure increasing breast cancer risk by 1 percent, resulting in a cumulative 10 percent increased risk over ten years of premenopausal screening, usually from ages 40 to 50; risks are even greater for "baseline" screening at younger ages, for which there is no evidence of any future relevance as baseline screenings are irrelevant as to future cancer risk since the premenopausal breast will change** a lot over the years to maturity. Furthermore, breast cancer risks from mammography are up to fourfold higher for the 1 to 2 percent of women who are silent carriers of the A-T (ataxia-telangiectasia) gene and thus highly sensitive to the carcinogenic effects of radiation; by some estimates this accounts for up to 20 percent of all breast cancers annually in the United States.

Cancer Risks from Breast Compression
As early as 1928, physicians were warned to handle "cancerous breasts with care— for fear of accidentally disseminating cells" and spreading cancer. Nevertheless, mammography entails tight and often painful compression of the breast, particularly in premenopausal women. This may lead to distant and lethal spread of malignant cells by rupturing small blood vessels in or around small, as yet undetected breast cancers.

Delays in Diagnostic Mammography
As increasing numbers of premenopausal women are responding to the American Cancer Society's aggressively promoted screening, imaging centers are becoming flooded and overwhelmed. Resultingly, patients referred for diagnostic mammography are now experiencing potentially dangerous delays, up to several months, before they can be examined.

So, all in all, that does mean that mammograms increase the risk of developing breast cancer is that correct? LOL.

Thanks,
SARAH

hi, no; it simply means that some experts believe they do and so do I. I sure wouldn't want radiation in that area. Too risky .

Lumps are not always felt. They may be too far below the surface, too small, etc.

There are many different opinions on cancer treatment, but I can tell you this -- thousands and thousands of women die every year from breast cancer because it wasn't detected early enough.

Mammograms are proven to save lives. Please encourage all the women you know to have annual mammograms. Ultrasound and MRI are also great diagnostic tools.

Hi Kalie,

I just recently had an ultrasound guided wire localization excisional biopsy last Friday and had 2 masses removed. Thank GOD that the path report came back as fibrocystic changes (disease?) What I am wondering is I am feeling a thickened area of tissue on the left side now and saw the nurse midwife in my GYN's office yesterday who said it was fibrocystic and that I should not worry but that I should have my surgeon check it out on Friday when I see him. I am really wondering if I should have an Ultrasound done on the left side because one of the masses from the right side was found only on Ultrasound. I would rather be safe than sorry. Any insight??

Hi there!
I definitely agree that you should talk to your surgeon about it. Ask him for another ultrasound. Patients have to look out for themselves -- it's too easy to fall between the cracks in the medical system.

Am I correct that everyone is saying you simply have a fibrocystic breast condition? I had that once many years ago. I got rid of it in 3 weeks by taking 800mg of vitamin E a day and bee propolis. :)
Never came back. Maybe you've been influenced about cancer by a friend or relative? :confused: When my doc told me I had the cystic breasts he couldn't have cared less. It was the end of that story. ;)
Please try to relax; you don't want them cutting on you do you? :nono: If you press them they WILL do it!! Best Wishes,

Am I correct that everyone is saying you simply have a fibrocystic breast condition? I had that once many years ago. I got rid of it in 3 weeks by taking 800mg of vitamin E a day and bee propolis. :)
Never came back. Maybe you've been influenced about cancer by a friend or relative? :confused: When my doc told me I had the cystic breasts he couldn't have cared less. It was the end of that story. ;)
Please try to relax; you don't want them cutting on you do you? :nono: If you press them they WILL do it!! Best Wishes,

Smart Lady....she knows what she's talking about. Educate yourself...the pro's and con's of every treatment and then go with your gut feeling. I have breast cancer...my choice is alternative rather than going under the knife, and I know I made the right decision for myself.

I would never advise anyone to avoid mammograms. I've already had one benign cyst removed from my breast that could well have turned malignant. It was the mammogram that found it. If I have breast cancer I'd like to discover it as quickly as possible.

Some growths are not feelable... this one was back by the rib cage and if malignant would have been deadly for its position. No self breast exam would have detected it.

I go every year and the risk of the small amount of radiation is small considering the risk of cancer.

hi i just had a mammogram done a couple weeks ago i got a call from doc that i need a ultra sound done they found a discrete mass i do breast cks every month i have no lumps and no tenderness i do have alot of fluid above my breast no tenderness should i be worried

Barbee, only radiologists know if we are receiving a "small amount" of radiation over the decades. The term "mammogram" is kind of misleading since they take SEVERAL films of each breast per visit. This adds up.
I had a lump I could feel 18 years ago. I took 800 mg of vitamin E and 2500mg of bee propolis for a few weeks and it went away. I never saw a doctor about it. They would have mammoe'd me and biopsied me and Lord knows what . I took care of it by myself. It never returned. I was in a lot of stress at the time.
Dazed, anyone would be worried. Not saying it's justified; saying that it is a normal reaction to get a call from a doctor then to start worrying.
Keep us posted, ok?

Barbee (and others),
An article I read says that women treated with breast radiation (as treatment) for Hodgkin’s Disease have an increased risk of getting breast cancer. As a woman’s radiation doses increase so does her chance of getting breast cancer!! This type of breast-area radiation is common among women who have Hodgkin’s disease, but they say that the benefits of such treatment outweigh the risks.
The article adds to the evidence showing a correlation between radiation therapy and breast cancer. The American Cancer Society says that women who have had breast radiation treatment should start yearly mammograms at 30 instead of 40. But mammography for women in their 30s and 40s is controversial because radiation is a known cause** of breast cancer. Exposure builds up over a lifetime – many low doses may eventually add up to a dose high enough to cause** breast cancer.