3D Mammography

Baptist Health Richmond: 3D Mammography

Radiologist SHARDAN RADMANESH, MD explains 3D Mammography, known as Tomosynthesis, for breast cancer detection. Seeing dense breast tissue in thinner slices helps find smaller cancers earlier.

3D Mammography Health Talks Transcript

Shardan Radmanesh, MD

With traditional mammography, the breast tissue can overlap and it can obscure findings or sometimes it can create false findings. With 3D tomosynthesis you are able to see more detail. You can get right at the overlap of breast tissue, and you have about a 25% increase in the findings of breast cancer with tomosynthesis. Early detection is very important because at an earlier stage, it is more treatable and often times we can find it before it has spread anywhere else in the body.

3D mammography is very similar to 2D mammography. I don’t believe the patient will even notice the difference. It usually takes about four minutes longer than just a regular 2D mammography. The patient really doesn’t notice any difference. The word about tomosynthesis has already gotten out to the community, and the number of mammograms that we have been doing per month have increased. A lot of women already know about this technology and want this technology. And they actively seek it out. I see family members telling other family members that they should have the 3D mammography other than the traditional 2D.

This is definitely a technology that helps save people’s lives.