Dense breasts??

Hi PA,

I too have dense breasts ..that is until my forthcoming mastectomy to remove. 4+cm tumor not found on mammogram five months earlier. I'm not sure when or if density subsides but I am a proponent of US and MRI for detection over mammograms . Too many follow-ups in my life due to large painful and benign cysts lulled me into trusting the mammo result with no further follow up. The letter you describe is a fairly new regulation to inform and encourage women into having additional testing done regardless of negative mammo results. That is a good thing. My primary care received every test result through the years and never once said - get an mri due to density. I just lived by the "see you next year" philosophy; joyous and relieved. It was a change in the breast shape that I noticed that sent me to a gyno specialist who sent me for additional testing.

I've heard density lessons over time but I don't know if the higher risk that rides it's coat tails goes along with it. Either way i believe women and Drs need to advocate much more definitive and aggressive screening methods.

My silver lining at this point is that I will not miss this heavy painful lumpy and apparently volitile breast tissue. What I will miss is the opportunity to turn back the clock and find this cancer sooner.

It is possible you had dense breasts all along and were not told until now. When I viewed my mammograms and notes from the local women's center, there were notations about "dense" breast tissue in each of the last several years, but I was never notified of this. A note came back with my mammogram done this past Dec. at the breast center notifying me of the dense breast tissue. First notification ever, although I know from looking at my old mammo results that it had been an issue for years. And I think some states have just recently required patients with dense breast tissue to be notified and some places that did not notify women with dense breast tissue in the past are now doing so.

I started having mammograms at age 39 or so. At every one I was told I have dense breasts. After BC diagnosis at age 60, I mentioned to my breast surgeon that I know my breasts are dense. The reply: "Not especially."

I figure a breast surgeon would know. Were the earlier mammographers and doctors wrong, or did my breasts become less dense with age?

It seems that most of the women I know (with whom I've discussed breast issues) have been told that they have dense breasts. Do doctor just routinely tell most of us that? Sometimes I wonder...