Butler Health System | Health Link | Fall 2020

Breasts are composed of glandular tissue and fat. Dense breasts have greater than 50% glandular tissue. There are four categories of breast density: fatty, scat- tered, heterogeneously dense and extremely dense. The heterogeneously (51% to 75% glandular) and extremely dense (greater than 75% glandular) are the categories that constitute dense breasts. Dense breasts are very common: 40% to 50% of women have them. Why is breast density important? Having dense breasts can cause mammograms to be more difficult to interpret. The reason for this is that glandular tissue appears as white on a mammogram, and so do cancers. The more “white” tissue (glandular tissue), the more likely it is that the tissue will mask or hide a small cancer. In fact, the No. 1 reason breast cancers are missed at mammography is dense breasts! Moreover, increased breast density is a significant risk factor for developing breast cancer. Your risk of breast cancer is 4 to 6 times greater if you have extremely dense breasts, and 70% of all breast cancers occur in dense breasts. What can be done to increase breast cancer detection? The American College of Radiology recommends annual mammograms for women 40 years and older. Mammography is the gold standard for breast cancer screening. However, for some women with dense breasts, mammography is not enough. They need an additional screening method. One of these additional screenings is with ultrasound. Cancers appear to be white on mammograms; however, on ultrasound, cancers appear as black areas on a background of white glandular tissue. Therefore, they can be more easily detected on ultrasound. Breast ultrasound can detect about three more cancers per 1,000 screened women than screening mammography alone. Ultrasound should not replace mammography, because mammography can reveal changes in breast tissue that ultrasound cannot. Mammography and breast ultrasound should be used together for dense breasts. What is ABUS? In contrast to handheld ultrasound equipment, ABUS (automated breast ultrasound) has a mechanical arm that scans the breasts. There is a small degree of compression by a platelike device that rests on the top of the breast while patients lie on their backs. The scanning mechanism is inside this device. Total scan time is about 20 minutes. Benefits of the ABUS include consistent, BREAST CANCER Meet Dr. Reginella RUTHANE F. REGINELLA, MD, IS A DIAGNOSTIC RADIOLOGY SPECIALIST WITH BHS Education and training » Medical School: Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey » Diagnostic Radiology Residency: Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey » Women’s Imaging Fellowship: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Magee–Womens Hospital, Pittsburgh » Board Certification: American Board of Radiology » Specialties: Women’s Imaging, Ultrasound Have dense breasts? Know your cancer risk reproducible exams and decreased operator error. As images are obtained, they are recorded for the radiologist’s review. These images are also processed into a 3-D format for review. Where can I get an ABUS scan? Butler Health System is proud to offer ABUS at its Women’s Imaging Center at 129 Oneida Valley Road, Butler. We are the only facility in a 50-mile radius offer- ing this new, advanced imaging. You will need to have a doctor’s order for this exam. Most insurance plans cover this test. A new law in Pennsylvania, signed by Gov. Tom Wolf in July 2020, requires insurance companies in Pennsylvania to cover additional breast cancer screening in women with dense breasts. Check your insurance to make sure you are covered. To make an appointment, call 724-284-4000 . Now offering Invenia Automated Breast Ultrasound (ABUS) Call 724-284-4850 to see if ABUS is right for you! HEALTH LINK 6 |