woman's health

Mammography

Importance of Mammography

Mammography is a diagnostic radiological technique that allows early detection of breast lesions. The careful study of the udders also allows the identification of small anomalies, such as microcalcifications.

For this reason its diagnostic effectiveness is superior to the clinical palpation, which manages to identify only lesions larger than one centimeter.

An early diagnosis is essential because it allows to safeguard the health of the woman and the integrity of the breast. It is estimated that over 97% of breast cancers diagnosed at an early stage resolve positively in the following 5 years. If, on the other hand, the discovery takes place at a later stage, the possibilities for treatment and healing are much more limited.

Therefore mammography must first of all have a preventive character and must not be seen by the patient as a simple diagnostic tool. Its repetition at regular time intervals is essential to prevent and defeat the most common malignancy in incidence and mortality in the female population.

The diagnostic effectiveness of mammography can be reduced by some factors, such as the presence of prostheses, the age of less than 50 years, the density of glandular tissue and never having breast-fed.

In particular, under the age of 40, it must be considered that the poor diagnostic accuracy, in addition to requiring large economic costs, in many cases leads to the discovery of false positives, generating unnecessary fears in the young woman and subjecting her to further investigations that in many cases prove useless .

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How to do it

The execution of the examination should not in the least frighten the patient. This is a simple, standardized procedure that does not require special attention.

Mammography does not need any kind of preparation; no drugs are administered and fasting or observance of special dietary rules is not required.

The examination is normally not painful and for this reason no form of anesthesia is performed.

It lasts about ten minutes on average and there is no need for third-party assistance.

Mammography is performed with the aid of a special radiological instrument called a mammograph.

This instrument is able to project an X-ray beam directly onto the breast.

In order to make the image sharper and to reduce radiation doses to a minimum, the breast is placed on a special support and lightly compressed between two plastic plates. In this way the adipose and glandular tissues are compressed and dissociated making their examination easier.

Normally two projections are performed, one from the top, and the other from the side (cranio-caudal direction and mediolateral oblique) for each breast for a total of four radiographs. The compression and acquisition time lasts a few seconds and normally does not cause any particular discomfort or inconvenience. Only in the presence of hypersensitivity, the procedure can be annoying, but, given the short compression times, the discomfort is more than bearable.

If the situation makes it necessary, the doctor can carry out further projections to identify any anomalies with greater certainty.

The mammografo is used exclusively to monitor the situation of the breast and, like all the machines, it is subject to usury and technological evolutions.

Mammography and mammography "