Cancer screening means we're looking for cancer before you have any signs or symptoms.

Screening can find cancer early before it's spread. This gives us more options to treat you and a better chance of curing your cancer. It also increases your chances of long-term survival.

At Carilion, women who are at normal risk of breast cancer should be offered breast cancer screening mammograms:

• Start at age 40. If you have additional risk factors, you may need to begin earlier (see below).
• Annual mammograms are recommended, though screening every 2 years may be an option after discussing the risks and benefits with your doctor.
• Continue screening until about age 75, or until life expectancy is less than 10 years.

Additionally, you can note any changes in your breasts, but you don't need to do routine self-breast exams. You and your doctor can decide if you'd like to do clinical breast exams at your annual gynecological exam.

These guidelines also apply to women with breast implants. Our technicians are experts at screening women with breast implants.

If you have breast cancer risks, talk to your doctor about your breast cancer screening options. Risks include:

• A personal or family history of breast cancer
• Certain genetic mutations
• Dense breasts

They may suggest earlier screening, screening more often, or screening with additional tools.

If you’re a Carilion patient with MyChart, you can conveniently schedule your screening mammogram online. You can also call our centralized scheduling number at 540-510-6400.

If you have questions about when to begin screening or your personal risk factors, talk with your primary care or women’s health care team.

Mammograms are X-ray pictures of your breasts. The technician will take several X-ray images of each breast and save them as digital images. 

Our radiologists can enhance, magnify, or adjust the digital images to better look at any breast changes we see. We can share these files with our partners at Blue Ridge Cancer Center and the Massey Cancer Center at Virginia Commonwealth University and use them to create the best treatment plan for you. 

The 2 types of screening are:

• 2-D mammogram: This standard digital image uses low-dose radiation to take the X-ray images of your breast.
• 3-D mammogram (tomosynthesis): These use low-dose radiation to take images of your breast from different angles. We put them together to make a 3-D picture.

What kind of screening you get may depend on your health insurance and what your doctor suggests. Your doctor and the imaging clinic radiologists will determine the appropriate screening for you.

Our experienced, patient-centered breast health team focuses on making breast cancer screening as pleasant as possible. Breast cancer screening is a simple process.

On the day of your scheduled screening, do not wear any lotion, deodorant, or perfumes on your breasts or under your armpits. These products can look like early signs of cancer. Let your testing clinician know if you're wearing deodorant or another product. They can give you body wipes to use beforehand. 

You’ll remove your clothes and wear a hospital gown that opens in the front. You’ll stand at a large machine that takes the images. The technician will position your breasts and your body to get the best images possible. They'll let you know when to hold your breath and when to exhale.

The machine squeezes your breast between 2 plates to get the best images. It may feel uncomfortable, and we try our best to be gentle. The pressure only lasts a few seconds.

After the test, a radiologist will look over your images while you wait. At our imaging locations, we provide separate and comfortable waiting areas for your privacy. You’ll also have access to your results through your MyChart. Your doctor may call you to discuss your results and next steps if needed.

What are dense breasts?

After your first mammogram, your screening report may say that you have dense breasts. Nearly half of all women aged 40 and older have dense breasts.

Having dense breasts can make it more difficult to see cancer. Based upon your screening mammography and your individual risk, you may need additional testing.

Other breast cancer diagnostic tools

If the radiologist has concerns about your results, they may suggest diagnostic testing. They'll use the same machine to take even more images of your breast from different angles or magnify certain areas.

They may also suggest other diagnostic imaging tools to help them make a final diagnosis. These include:

• Breast ultrasound: This test uses sound waves to see inside the breast.
• Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): This test uses radio waves and strong magnets to take images of the inside of the breasts. At Carilion, we have an MRI machine set up for breast testing with a special device called a dedicated breast coil.

Research shows that screening can help reduce deaths from breast cancer among women ages 40 to 74 years at average risk. The benefits are highest in women ages 50 to 69.

Our experts are firm believers in using screening mammograms to protect your breast health and your life. Still, all screenings come with a risk of potential harm.

Risks of breast cancer screening include:

• False-positive results: When an abnormal result isn’t cancer, you may have more tests or procedures that you didn’t need. These may include a breast biopsy, which can occasionally cause physical harm and anxiety.
• False-negative results: When your result looks normal, but you have cancer. Screening only catches about 80% of cancers. A false sense of security from a screening may mean you overlook symptoms. 
• Radiation exposure: All mammograms use a very low dose of radiation. However, when added to other sources of radiation exposure, like from your work or radiation treatments, it can cause cancer. 
• Overdiagnosis and overtreatment: Screening can find abnormal cells in the milk duct lining. Doctors call this “precancer” ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). We treat all cases of DCIS, even though not all of them will turn into cancer. There’s no way to know which will or won’t.