Screening Ultrasound for Women with Dense Breasts in the Age of Patient-centered Care

Abstract

As the field of medicine moves toward practicing patient-centered care, radiologists in breast imaging must continue to look for ways to increase the value of their practice in the eyes of patients. Providing adjunct screening of women with dense breasts provides such an opportunity. The presence of dense breast tissue is not only an independent risk factor for breast cancer but also a risk factor for the delayed diagnosis of breast cancer as dense tissue reduces the efficacy of screening mammograms due to the tissue masking effect. As legislation for notifying women of their breast density becomes commonplace, both women and referring physicians need to understand the risks of dense breast tissue as well as the benefits of additional screening affords. Breast radiologists can become integral to their patients’ care team by offering education to both referring providers and patients on the topic of dense breasts and supplemental screening solutions, such as screening breast ultrasound, which has been shown to have benefit in overcoming mammography’s shortcomings in this demographic of women.