What does heterogeneously dense may obscure small masses?
My mammogram described my breasts as being “heterogeneously dense, which may obscure small masses.” What does this mean? This means that you have moderately dense tissue. This is common and not a cause for concern. Sometimes dense tissue can make it harder to accurately read a mammogram.
What does heterogeneously dense mean?
Heterogeneously dense indicates that some areas of non-dense tissue were found, but the majority of the breast tissue is dense. About 40 percent women have this result. Extremely dense indicates that nearly all the breast tissue is dense. About 10 percent of women have this result.
How common is heterogeneously dense breast tissue?
About 4 in 10 women have this result. C: Heterogeneously dense indicates that there are some areas of nondense tissue, but that the majority of the breast tissue is dense. About 4 in 10 women have this result.
Does dense breast mean cancer?
Women with dense breasts have a higher chance of getting breast cancer. The more dense your breasts are, the higher your risk. Scientists don’t know for sure why this is true. Breast cancer patients who have dense breasts are not more likely to die from breast cancer than patients with non-dense (fatty) breasts.
What does heterogeneously dense mean in breast?
A term used to describe breast tissue that has large areas of dense fibrous tissue and glandular tissue and also has some fatty tissue. The dense areas of the breast make it harder to find tumors or other changes on a mammogram.
Can dense breast tissue go away?
The good news – breast density can diminish over time. However, women whose breast density does not diminish over time are more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer.
Which may obscure small masses?
Breast density is categorized into one of four categories, defined by the American College of Radiology: The breast is almost entirely fatty. There are scattered fibroglandular densities. The breast tissue is heterogeneously dense, which may obscure small masses (40% of women).
What does it mean to have heterogeneously dense breasts?
What is heterogeneously enhancing mass?
Internal enhancement of masses can be described as homogeneous or heterogeneous. Homogeneous enhancement is confluent and uniform (Fig. 8). Heterogeneous enhancement is non-uniform with areas of variable signal intensity (SI) (Fig. 9).
What is heterogeneous tissue?
Heterogeneous is a word pathologists use to describe tissue that looks very different from one area of the tissue to the next. Differences in colour, shape, and size can make a tissue look heterogeneous. Heterogeneous can be used to describe the way the tissue looks with or without a microscope.
What does it mean when your breasts are heterogeneously dense?
What is intramammary lymph node?
Intramammary lymph nodes (IMLN) are one of the most common benign findings at screening mammography. 1,2. They are defined as lymph nodes that should be surrounded by breast tissue in all sides, which differentiate them from those in the lower axillary region.
What does heterogeneous dense tissue in breast mean?
My mammogram described my breasts as being “heterogeneously dense, which may obscure small masses.” What does that mean? This means that you have moderately dense tissue, which is common and not a cause for concern. Sometimes, dense tissue can make it difficult to accurately read a mammogram.
What does dense tissue mean in a mammogram?
This means that you have moderately dense tissue, which is common and not a cause for concern. Sometimes, dense tissue can make it difficult to accurately read a mammogram. You and your doctor can discuss options for supplemental screening (i.e. screening method in addition to a mammogram), if necessary.
Can a woman be told she has dense breast tissue?
The likelihood of a woman being told she has dense breasts varies substantially according to which radiologist interprets her mammogram.” Sprague BL et al. Ann Int Med 2016. doi: 10.7326/M15-2934 Publ. online 19 July 2016 9 Some causes of increased density • Younger age • Pregnancy, breast-feeding • Fibrocystic changes