Recently, there was another national TV network series story on medical imaging and radiation. The media loves to create controversy because that is what increases viewership, sells newspapers and promotes heated conversations in the social media. No medical advocacy group wants to sue them for libel.
Let us set the record straight. Radiation is a concern to all Americans. We are exposed to cosmic radiation just by living on our planet. Did you know that the cosmic radiation dose varies depending on the level of your residence above sea level? As an example, people who live in Denver, CO are exposed to more radiation than those in Fairfax, VA in their daily lives. This is because Denver is one mile above sea level as compared to Fairfax! In parts of China, the background radiation is ten times higher than in a typical U.S. city.
Let’s talk about radiation dose. It is measured in units of Sieverts, just as length can be measured in inches, feet, millimeters, centimeters, etc. Modern day mammography results in a radiation dose of 0.4 of 1000 Sieverts. Described another way, the mammographic dose is 0.4 mSv of radiation. This dose is a little less than the extra radiation a person would receive just by living in Denver for a year.
The FAA considers 20 mSv of radiation annually safe for airline crews working on commercial airlines. That is equivalent to having 54 mammograms per year. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission considers 50 mSV per year safe for nuclear power plant workers.
It is true that a single dose of 500 mSv is associated with causing a number of cancers including breast cancer. However, this dose is similar to the exposure of Hiroshima, and is equivalent to 125,000 mammograms taken consecutively on a single visit. It’s important to keep in mind that a little dose of radiation has an even less damaging effect when it’s not delivered all at once, but only as a small amount every year. As an example, we all know that drinking a gallon of vodka could kill a person, yet a single martini would not do so.
Since the advent of modern day mammography in the 1980’s and the recommendation for yearly mammography screening beginning at age 40, the death rate of breast cancer has decreased by 30%. Do not be afraid of undergoing a yearly screening mammogram due to concerns of radiation. The benefit of early detection of breast cancer outlays any miniscule risk of radiation causing breast cancer.
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) instituted under Obama Care, advocates mammography beginning at 50 and performing it only every two years. The American Cancer Society and other medical organizations still recommend yearly mammography starting at age 40 due to the results of many controlled clinical trials showing a significant decrease in the mortality rate from breast cancer. If we change mammogram schedules from yearly to biennially in order to receive the supposed benefits of curtailing costs as the USPSTF recommends, then we will ultimately see an overall increase in health costs by treating a significant number of advanced cancers. And how do you place a price on the increased death rate from breast cancer?
Do not let the concerns of radiation dose stand in your way from having your yearly mammogram starting in your 40’s. Another important point to remember – 80% of women diagnosed every year with breast cancer have no family history of breast cancer!
KCBC patient is the first patient to complete breast cancer treatment at Provision’s Proton Therapy Center. Read story here.
Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association reported by the AP suggests that “removing both breasts to treat cancer affecting only one side doesn’t boost survival chances for most women, compared with surgery that removes just the tumor.” To read this article click here
A recent study discussed the benefits for women 75 and older continuing screening mammography. To read the article click here.
An American College of Radiology press release announced that research confirms that screening mammography finds breast cancers at earlier stages. Barbara Monsees, MD, chair of the American College of Radiology Breast Imaging Commission, said, “The findings confirm what breast cancer experts have long known – that widespread mammography screening has positively impacted the lives of women nationwide.” Click here to read more.
Knoxville, TN, April 7, 2014: Imelda G. Margulies, MSN, FNP-BC, Coordinator for the High Risk Assessment Clinic at the Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center, has been selected one of the few cancer risk genetic counselors in the country by Myriad Genetic Laboratories, Inc. to offer patients the Myriad myRisk™ Hereditary Cancer Panel that offers more than just BRCA testing. Myriad myRisk™ Hereditary Cancer Panel represents a new paradigm for clinical genetic testing for inherited cancer risk. The previous model was based on the analysis of one or a small number of genes for individual syndromes, with the choice based on consideration of the patient’s personal and family history. The new model encompasses the simultaneous analysis of a larger number of genes combined in a panel to broadly target specific cancer sites. myRisk is a 25-gene panel for the identification of clinically significant mutations impacting inherited risks for eight important cancers: breast, colorectal, ovarian, endometrial, gastric, pancreatic, melanoma and prostate.
Imelda G. Margulies, MSN, FNP-BC, Family Nurse Practitioner, received advanced training in hereditary cancer risk assessment and cancer prevention at the City of Hope in Duarte, CA, having graduated from the Intensive Course in Cancer Risk Assessment in 2010. Mrs. Margulies is one of only two practitioners in the state of Tennessee to have graduated from the course.
myRisk offers patients a clear insight into their personalized risk of developing cancer and will provide those patients with clear direction of risk reduction based on recommendations from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines.
Imelda G. Margulies, MSN, FNP-BC, is available for consultation to see if Myriad myRisk™ Hereditary Cancer Panel is the right test for you and your family. Please call 865-583-2922 to schedule an appointment.
For more information, please contact Imelda G. Margulies at 865-583-2922.
Dr. Kamilia Kozlowski has worked for the past three years to have the bill passed that requires physicians to tell patient if they have a dense breast pattern. Read the full story.