Academy employs state-of-the-art mammography machine

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Stephany Watkins, RN
  • Academy Health Care Integration
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  The 10th Medical Group's Diagnostic Imaging Department now has a second full-field digital mammography unit. Full-field digital mammography offers the potential for significant advances in breast cancer diagnosis, including enhanced image quality, lower radiation dose and improved cancer detection rates. 

According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women, exceeded by only lung cancer. The chance of a woman having breast cancer some time during her life is about 1 in 8. In the U.S last year, there were 182,400 women diagnosed with breast cancer and 40,000 died of the disease. 

Early detection through screenings and improved treatments has been shown to decrease a woman's chance of dying from this devastating disease. The ACS recommends women age 40 and older have a clinical breast exam and mammogram every year. The combined approach of an annual mammogram and clinical breast exam offers women the best chance to reduce their risk of dying from breast cancer. 

There's no time like the present to make an appointment, Academy medical officials said. 

To schedule an appointment for a clinical breast exam with your primary care manager or a women's health practitioner in the women's health clinic, call 719-457-CARE (2273). You will receive a referral for your mammogram during that appointment.