Mammograms are commonly used for breast cancer screening, however, there are alternatives available including digital mammograms and thermograms.
Digitalmammography uses solid state detectors which alter x-rays into electric signals. The digital mammography process still uses radiation, but only in small doses. The electrical power that flows to create images can be controlled. Pictures can be enlarged for doctors to see various areas of breast tissue without taking additional images.
When it comes to breast cancer, breast thermography can reveal thermal signs consistent with thermal signs known to be correlated with cancer symptoms. Thermography helps detect cancer sometimes as early as ten years before it would be noticed with mammography. Many breast tumors grow up to 20 years before they are noticed by the usual diagnostic methods. Cancer can be detected with thermography at the initial phases of development, when it is fairly simple to diminish its growth.
Unlike a standard mammogram, thereis no pain or compressing of the breasts in a thermogram. No rays of any type enter the patient’s body. While the effectiveness and accuracy of mammography decreases when breast tissue is dense, densityisn’t an issue in reading the results of thermography.