LAMC Medical Imaging Director Susan Cazaux with the hospital’s GE Senographe Pristina 3D mammography machine. Photo by Bonnie J. Gordon/ladailypost.com
By SUSAN CAZAUX
Director of Medical Imaging
At Los Alamos Medical Center (LAMC) we take a stand against breast cancer! We want all of the women in our communities – our mothers, grandmothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and friends – to know their risk, to recognize the signs and symptoms, and to understand the importance of self-checks and early detection.
Throughout October, LAMC will join hundreds of other businesses, organizations, celebrities, and professional athletic teams in celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Launched in 1985, Breast Cancer Awareness Month aims to raise awareness and help fight the disease through early detection.
At LAMC we use 3-D digital mammography, allowing us to better see through a patient’s breast tissue and evaluate possible findings and other areas that are often obscured on the 2D mammogram. When used in conjunction with traditional mammography, there is an increased detection of cancer cases.
One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime and in 2022 an estimated 287,850 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the United States as well as about 51,400 new cases of non-invasive breast cancer.
According to the American Cancer Society, when breast cancer is detected early, and is in the localized stage, the five-year survival rate is 99 percent. However, many women are diagnosed beyond the early detection window, and this has led to higher mortality rates. Women should also know how their breasts normally look and feel and report any breast changes to a health care provider right away.
Like most cancers, early detection of breast cancer is key to successful treatment and recovery. If you are 40 years or older, talk to your doctor or other health care provider about when to start and how often to get your mammogram.
Call 505.661.9211 today to schedule your mammogram.
