A mammogram is an x-ray examination of the breasts, used to detect and diagnose breast diseases. Screening mammography is used as a preventive measure for women who have no symptoms of breast disease and usually involves two views of each breast. A diagnostic mammography involves additional views of the breast, and is used when an abnormality is found during a screening, or in women who have breast complaints, such as a breast mass, nipple discharge, breast pain, or skin irritation.

The American Cancer Society and American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend that all women have a baseline screening mammogram between the ages of 35 and 40 and that beginning at the age of 40, women have an annual screening mammogram. Mammograms play a central part in the early detection of breast cancer because they can detect changes in the breast that may be early signs of cancer, but are too small or subtle to be felt.

• One in eight women living in the U.S will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.
• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in U.S. women. It is the leading cause of death in 35 to 65 year old women.
• Approximately 2.4 million American women with a history of breast cancer are alive today.

There is no disagreement that early and accurate diagnosis of breast cancer is key to improving clinical outcomes. Mammography – and in particular, digital mammography – is now widely regarded as the gold standard for detecting early breast cancer disease. Mammography may detect cancer one and a half to four years before a cancer becomes clinically evident.