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☆ Mammography AI can cost patients extra. Is it worth it?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Michelle Andrews | Kff Health News | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

In recent years, AI software that helps radiologists detect problems or diagnose cancer using mammography has been moving into clinical use. This extra review has enormous potential to improve the detection of suspicious breast masses and lead to earlier diagnoses of breast cancer. With RadNet’s AI tool, “it’s as if all patients get the benefit of our very top performer.”But is the tech analysis worth the extra cost to patients? The health system has developed AI models and is testing the technology with mammograms but doesn’t yet offer it to patients, she said. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, “computer-assisted detection” software promised to improve breast cancer detection.

Persons: “, ”, Etta Pisano, RadNet, Gregory Sorensen, Sorensen, generalists, ” Sorensen, Laura Heacock, NYU Langone Health’s, Heacock, it’s, Constance Lehman, ” Lehman, RadNet’s, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, Christoph Lee, mammography, Robert Smith, ” Smith, Smith, we’re Organizations: Health, American College of Radiology, NYU, Cancer, “, National Cancer Institute, FDA, Medicare, Services, CMS, Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Imaging Research, Mass, Get CNN, CNN Health, Screening, Research, University of Washington School of Medicine, American Cancer Society, Kaiser Health, KFF Locations: Manhattan, Baltimore, RadNet, New York, New Jersey, mammograms, Boston, Massachusetts, United States, Europe, Sweden, U.S

☆ Cancer Deaths Are Falling, but There May Be an Asterisk
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Gina Kolata | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The cancer society highlighted three chief factors in reduced cancer deaths: declines in smoking, early detection and greatly improved treatments. Breast cancer mortality is one area where treatment had a significant impact. That includes metastatic cancer, which counted for nearly 30 percent of the reduction in the breast cancer death rate. Breast cancer treatment has improved so much that it has become a bigger factor than screening in saving lives, said Ruth Etzioni, a biostatistician at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. “The biggest untold story in breast cancer is how much treatment has improved,” said Dr. H. Gilbert Welch, a cancer epidemiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Persons: “, ”, Donald Berry, Sylvia K, Plevritis, Ruth Etzioni, Mette Kalager, H, Gilbert Welch Organizations: University of Texas, Anderson Cancer Center, Stanford University, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, University of Oslo, Oslo University Hospital, Brigham, Women’s

☆ Patients are lining up for $2,500 full-body MRI scans that can detect cancer early
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

Prenuvo MRI machine Courtesy of PrenuvoWhile celebrating the July Fourth holiday last year on a boat in Tyler, Texas, Dr. Julianne Santarosa received the results from her full-body MRI scan. In addition to full-body scans, Prenuvo offers a head and torso scan for $1,800 and a scan of just the torso for $1,000. Some companies have started offering Prenuvo scans as a perk for employees, which has helped increase access to the technology. Medical experts caution that, in addition to the steep price, full-body MRI scans won't catch everything and aren't meant to replace targeted screenings like colonoscopies and mammograms. He found a radiologist who was offering an early version of a full-body MRI scan.

Persons: Julianne Santarosa, hadn't, she'd, Santarosa, Kim Kardashian, Cindy Crawford, Eric Schmidt, 23andMe, Anne Wojcicki, Tony Fadell, Andrew Lacy, Lacy, it's, Prenuvo, Jasnit, Dr, Kimberly Amrami, Amrami, It's, Prenuvo Lacy, Eduardo Dolhun, Dolhun Organizations: CNBC, Facebook, Google, Nest Labs, Felicis Ventures, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Association of American Medical Colleges, Columbia University Medical Center, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Mayo Clinic Locations: Tyler , Texas, Prenuvo, Dallas, U.S, Canada, London, Sydney, New York, Los Angeles, Irving, New York City , New York, York, San Francisco, Vancouver, British Columbia

Political Cartoons View All 1211 Images“Until we get more Black women into clinical trials, we can’t change the science. Black women are 40% more likely to die from breast cancer than white women and tend to be diagnosed younger. As recruiting continues, enrolling Black women and other women of color will “absolutely” continue as a priority, Pisano said. At the U.S. study sites, 21% of study participants are Black women — that's higher than a typical cancer treatment study, in which 9% of participants are Black, McCaskill-Stevens said. Her sister recently completed treatment for triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive type that affects Black women at higher rates than white women.

Persons: —, Carole Stovall, ” Stovall, ”, Ricki Fairley, Worta McCaskill, Stevens, McCaskill, there’s, Etta Pisano, Pisano, Cherie Kuzmiak, Stovall, Lucile Adams, Campbell, “, ” Pisano Organizations: Washington , D.C, National Cancer Institute, NCI, University of North, UNC, D.C, Georgetown University, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: Washington ,, Canada, South Korea, Peru, Argentina, Italy, U.S, Thailand, University of North Carolina, North Carolina, Washington

☆ Breast cancer signs you need to look out for
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Madeline Holcombe | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Do you know what to look for to detect breast cancer early? “Many breast changes are the result of aging and childbirth; however, breast cancer can present in a number of ways. “The only breast cancers that are cured … are breast cancers that are detected early,” he said. When it comes to breast cancer, men also need that empowerment, Pariser said. “Although the disease is less common in men, 1% of breast cancers occur in men,” she said.

Persons: Arthur G, Richard J, James, Ashley Pariser, – James, Pariser, ”, “, ” Pariser, Otis Brawley, Brawley, don’t, ’ Organizations: CNN, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer, James Cancer Hospital, Solove Research, American Cancer Society, Bloomberg, Johns Hopkins University, Empowerment Locations: United States

With lifespans longer and families more spread out, it's essential that I think about long-term care. Long-term care insurance comes in many forms at many costs. The days of an unmarried woman taking care of elderly relatives are a thing of the past, which is why long-term care insurance products are more popular. Long-term care insurance goes beyond the standard health care insurance policy. A long-term care insurance policy protects against the risk of having to pay out of pocket for in-home and/or out-of-home care services.

Persons: —, Robert Kircher, what's, What's Organizations: Service, Northwestern Mutual Insurance, Life Locations: United States, Massachusetts, Policygenius

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jill Biden is urging women to consult their doctors about getting mammograms or other cancer screenings, saying in a new public service announcement for Breast Cancer Awareness Month that early detection saves lives. "There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but we know that early detection of cancer saves lives.”Biden's ad is part of an annual breast cancer awareness campaign by Lifetime, according to the cable network. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in U.S. women after skin cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Breast cancer deaths have declined over time but remain the second leading cause of cancer death among women overall, the CDC said. One in eight women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime.

Persons: — Jill Biden, ”, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Rachel Lindsay, Joe Biden Organizations: WASHINGTON, Cancer, Lifetime, Health Initiative, Centers for Disease Control, CDC Locations: Delaware, U.S

☆ These 5 strategies can help you avoid surprise medical bills
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Sponsor Post | Created Unitedhealthcare S Surest With Insider Studios | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Other recent regulations require hospitals to post prices online, and while these efforts offer important protections for people, there are various other ways to help avoid an unexpected medical bill. To help avoid that, confirm with your health plan that any services or tests are covered under your benefits. Negotiate surprise billsIn the event of a surprise bill, there are several steps to pursue. No one wants a surprise medical bill. Learn more about how to avoid surprise medical bills at surest.com.

Persons: Donna O'Shea, — Organizations: Population Health, Insider Studios Locations: surest.com

☆ A Number That Should Guide Your Health Choices (It’s Not Your Age)
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-23 | by ( Paula Span | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At her annual visit, the patient’s doctor asks if she plans to continue having regular mammograms to screen for breast cancer, and then reminds her that it’s been almost 10 years since her last colonoscopy. The patient’s age alone may be an argument against further mammogram appointments. The task force gives it a C grade for those 76 to 85, meaning there’s “at least moderate certainty that the net benefit is small.” It should only be offered selectively, the guidelines say. Does she have heart disease? Does she smoke?

Persons: it’s Organizations: . Preventive Services Task Force

☆ Opinion | Getting Screened Early for Breast Cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Overtreatment, No,” by Mehra Golshan (Opinion guest essay, May 18):When I was 44, my routine annual screening mammogram detected a distortion that turned out to be a highly aggressive and dangerous form of breast cancer. Fortunately, because I was screened annually, it was caught at an early stage and was treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Now that I’m well into my 60s, I’m grateful every day for the mammogram that caught that deadly cancer early enough to save my life. Statistically, annual mammogram screening for breast cancer before age 50 may not “save enough lives,” but it surely saved mine. Deborah SchuenemanFarmington Hills, Mich.To the Editor:Like Dr. Mehra Golshan, I am a breast cancer surgeon, and I wholeheartedly agree with his view of the new screening guidelines.

☆ What 40-Somethings Should Know About Breast Cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Dani Blum | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Some biopsies don’t indicate cancer, yet still create anxiety for patients — but many biopsies do find cancer, he said, which saves lives. Many of the factors that contribute to breast cancer risk, like genetics and a family history of cancer, aren’t modifiable; others are within a patient’s control, but not necessarily practical. For example, having a child before age 35 lowers the risk of breast cancer, as does breastfeeding, but a doctor would never recommend a woman have a child by a certain age to reduce cancer risk, said Avonne Connor, a cancer epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. But a few behaviors have been linked to a lower risk of breast cancer, doctors said. A mounting body of evidence has tied drinking to a higher risk of cancer in general — and potentially to breast cancer in particular, partly because alcohol can boost levels of estrogen in the body.

☆ When Should Women Get Regular Mammograms? At 40, U.S. Panel Now Says.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Roni Caryn Rabin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But there have been troubling trends in breast cancer in recent years. They include an apparent increase in the number of cancers diagnosed in women under 50 and a failure to narrow the survival gap for younger Black women, who die of breast cancer at twice the rate of white women of the same age. The panel has said there is insufficient evidence to make recommendations one way or the other for women who were 75 and older. had for the first time commissioned studies of breast cancer specifically among Black women, as well as for all women, and needed more research into the factors driving the racial disparity. The task force also is calling for a clinical trial to compare the effectiveness of annual and biennial screening among Black women.

☆ New Mammogram Advice: What to Know
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Roni Caryn Rabin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a panel of experts that issues guidelines about preventive care, has recommended all women start routine breast cancer screening at 40, instead of at 50, the previous recommendation. The panel continues to advise spacing the screenings at two-year intervals, although some other medical organizations endorse annual mammograms. The advice applies to all “cisgender women and other people assigned female at birth” who are at average risk for breast cancer and do not have any troubling symptoms that might indicate breast cancer. This group includes women with dense breast tissue and a family history of breast cancer. The recommendation does not apply to anyone who has already had breast cancer, has genetic mutations that increase breast cancer risk, has received high-dose radiation to the chest, or has had breast lesions identified in previous biopsies.

☆ Researchers Identify Possible New Risk for Breast Cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Roni Caryn Rabin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Now, a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer could “be updated every time she gets a new mammogram.”Background: Breast Density MattersBreast density is now an acknowledged risk factor for breast cancer, albeit one of many. Dozens of states have started requiring mammography centers to notify women if they have dense breast tissue. In March, the Food and Drug Administration recommended that providers tell women about their breast density. But this is the first study to measure changes in density over time and to report a link to breast cancer. One next step may to be examine breast density over time in women taking medication to prevent breast cancer to see if the density decreases, Dr. Knudsen suggested.

☆ Most Major Insurers to Continue Preventive Care Services
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Stephanie Armour | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Preventive healthcare services include mammograms and cancer screenings. Photo: Heather Charles/Chicago Tribune/Getty ImagesThe majority of insurers in the U.S. don’t expect to drop no-cost preventive healthcare services as a lawsuit challenging the Affordable Care Act requirement works its way through the courts, according to a letter to lawmakers from the six trade groups representing the insurance industry. Their decision was outlined Wednesday in a letter by trade groups to House and Senate Democratic health committee leaders, who on April 12 wrote to a dozen of the nation’s largest health insurers and trade associations asking whether they intend to cover all recommended preventive services without cost-sharing until all appellate review in the case is concluded.

☆ New study suggests Black women should be screened earlier for breast cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —A new study on breast cancer deaths raises questions around whether Black women should screen at earlier ages. Even though Black women have a 4% lower incidence rate of breast cancer than White women, they have a 40% higher breast cancer death rate. “When the breast cancer mortality rate for Black women in their 40s is 27 deaths per 100,000 person-years, this means 27 out of every 100,000 Black women aged 40-49 in the US die of breast cancer during one year of follow-up. They also wrote that health policy makers should pursue equity, not just equality, when it comes to breast cancer screening as a tool to help reduce breast cancer death rates. Having dense tissue in the breast can make it more difficult for radiologists to identify breast cancer on a mammogram, and women with dense breast tissue have a higher risk of breast cancer.

☆ Fact Check-Mammograms do not expose women to Hiroshima-level radiation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Breast cancer screenings reduce deaths from breast cancer and have considerably lower radiation levels than nuclear or atomic bombs, contrary to claims circulating in a video on social media. Dr Veronique Desaulniers, a bio-energetic chiropractor according to her LinkedIn profile, warns about the purported dangers of breast cancer screening in the clip posted on Instagram (here). “A decade of annual mammography would yield a total radiation dose 10 times that: 3.6 mSv,” he adds. A reduction in breast cancer deaths has been primarily attributed to mammography screening and early breast cancer detection (here). There is a radiation risk to the breasts of teenagers and women in their early 20s due to development, however, the risk drops rapidly as women age, according to Kopans.

☆ Health plans could soon reduce coverage for preventive care. Here's what to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Around 100 million people with private insurance got preventive care required under the ACA in 2018, one estimate found, making it the provision with the widest reach. Insurers generally must not impose copays or deductibles on the recommended preventive care. "Many preventive care services are not covered by this decision," Simon said. Health plans will still be required to ensure no copays for many preventive services, including birth control and mammograms, Simon said. Some states have their own mandates, meanwhile, around free preventive care.

☆ Mammograms Must Include Breast Density Information, New FDA Rule Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Talal Ansari | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Food and Drug Administration said updated mammography regulations will help provide important information that could affect patient care. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has updated its mammography regulations to require that women be notified if they have dense breast tissue, which can make imaging less precise and cancer harder to find. About half of women over the age of 40 in the U.S. have dense breasts, with more fibrous and glandular tissue than fatty tissue, according to the FDA. Not only can dense tissue make it harder for cancers to be detected in a mammogram, it has also “been identified as a risk factor for developing breast cancer,” the FDA said in a statement Thursday.

☆ Women Have Been Misled About Menopause
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Susan Dominus | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Until she stumbled on Alloy, she’d been relying on antibacterial creams to soothe the pain she felt. The space was clearly a no-judgment zone, a place where women could talk about how they personally felt about the risks and benefits of taking hormones. “My new OB-GYN and my cancer doc won’t put me on hormones,” the woman said. Faubion told me that in certain circumstances, higher-risk women who are fully informed of the risks but suffer terrible symptoms might reasonably make the decision to opt for hormones. Only once I took the hormones did I appreciate that my regular 2 a.m. wakings, too, were most likely a symptom of perimenopause.

"Everybody has a different amount of fibroglandular tissue and a different pattern," Freer said, referring to dense breast tissue. In individual interviews as part of Gunn's survey, six out of 61 women said dense breasts contributed to breast cancer risk. There are two reasons dense breasts are linked to a higher risk of breast cancer. To lower one's risk of breast cancer overall, doctors recommend limiting alcohol intake, exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy diet. The Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium offers an online tool to help people gauge their breast cancer risk based on multiple factors, including breast density.

☆ Only 14% of diagnosed cancers in the US are detected by screening, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —A small proportion – 14.1% – of all diagnosed cancers in the United States are detected by screening with a recommended screening test, according to a new report. “I was shocked that only 14% of cancers were detected by screening. I think, for many people, we talk so much about cancer screening that we imagine that that’s how all cancers are diagnosed. She suspects that the percentage of cancers detected by screening could now be even lower than what was found in the new report. “I definitely think that the percent of cancers detected by screening would have been lower as a result of the pandemic.

☆ Texas Lawsuit Challenges Key Plank of Affordable Care Act
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Stephanie Armour | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Employers have often supported preventive-care services because they say it helps reduce healthcare costs. WASHINGTON—A key element of the Affordable Care Act hangs in the balance as a federal lawsuit in Texas is challenging the law’s requirement that most insurers cover an array of preventive health services that range from screenings for depression to mammograms. A district court judge ruled in September that the way a federal task force determines which services are covered is unconstitutional and said the health-insurance requirement for HIV-prevention medications violated a company’s religious freedom.

For good.”R&B superstar Blige said she lost aunts and other family members to breast, cervical and lung cancer. She has promoted breast cancer screening in the past, especially among Black women who are disproportionately affected, through the Black Women’s Health Imperative. First lady Jill Biden, right, holds hands with singer Mary J. Blige during an event to launch the American Cancer Society's national roundtables on breast and cervical cancer in the State Dining Room of the White House, on Monday. Patrick Semansky / APBlige blamed misconceptions about mammograms among Black women and “the practice of not wanting other people in our business” for disparities in breast cancer outcomes between Blacks and whites. “She has a rock-hard mass in her breast,” Gore said.

☆ Normani recalls feeling ‘helpless’ while supporting her mom through breast cancer
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Liz Calvario | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Normani knows what it feels like to have a family member be diagnosed with breast cancer. In an op-ed for Elle magazine, the singer recalled feeling “helpless” after her mom was diagnosed for a second time. “I was in Los Angeles when I found out my mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer again. Three weeks earlier, when I was visiting my mom at home, she’d fallen into my arms expressing how scared she was,” Normani, who is an American Cancer Society ambassador, wrote. Additionally a 2021 report from American Society of Clinical Oncologists drops in cancer screenings, delays in care and other aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened the health disparities that Black women with breast cancer face.

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