SALEM, Va. – One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.
Doctors push for early detection, to increase a woman’s odds of beating it.
Friday marks National Mammography Day. It falls within Breast Cancer Awareness Month and serves as a reminder to get a yearly mammogram for early detection and prevention.
We spoke with a breast specialist at LewisGale, who says not to be afraid of getting the scan done.
“I have women all the time that are concerned about you know, ‘is it painful’ and you know, it’s not the most comfortable but it’s not as painful as it used to be,” Breast Specialty Physician Assistant at LewisGale Audrey Steier. “I think technology has come a long way. They have flexible paddles for compression, and truly you’re only in compression for a couple seconds.”
LewisGale says the addition of 3D mammograms has helped in detecting more types of breast cancers.