MISSION: EARLY DETECTION

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

MISSION: EARLY DETECTION

Mammograms help many women survive breast cancer

Radiology Manager at FCMC

This October, Floyd County Medical Center is proud to participate in National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the second most common kind of cancer in women. About 1 in 8 women born today in the United States will get breast cancer in their lifetime. The good news is that many women can survive breast cancer if it’s found and treated early.

If you are a woman over the age of 40, talk with your doctor about getting a mammogram every year. Recent evidence has confirmed that mammograms do offer a substantial benefit for women in their 40s. Age alone should not be the reason to stop having regular mammograms. Women should continue to have a yearly mammogram for as long as they are in good health.

Women in their 20s and 30s should have a clinical breast exam as part of a regular health exam by a healthcare professional, preferably every three years. Starting at age 40, women should have a clinical breast exam by a healthcare professional every year. It is extremely important that women do their own self breast exam every month outside of these appointments.

The American Cancer Society believes the use of mammograms, clinical breast exams, and finding and reporting breast changes early offers women the best chance to detect breast cancer at an early stage and seek treatment. This approach is clearly better than any one exam or test alone.

Talk to your Healthcare Provider about your risk for breast cancer, especially if a close family member has had breast or ovarian cancer.

For more information, contact Floyd County Medical Center Radiology/ Mammography Department at 641-257-4371.

By Wendy Burke