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You might be wondering what do firefighters and breast cancer detection have in common. Thermal detection. OK, it’s a stretch, yes, but Thermal Imaging or thermography may well be on its way not only to help firefighters detect what is going on through the walls but to provide a great tool in the detection of breast cancer.

Currently our “gold standard” to screen for breast cancer is mammography, clinical breast exam and self-breast exam. That in and of itself is great because we all have heard and probably know by now that the best way to fight breast cancer is early detection. What if I told you that it has been well documented that a mass, using mammography screening, had been growing for 8-10 years before it’s detection. Is this early detection?

There exists a technology that can detect an issue years before a tumor can be seen on X-ray or palpated during an exam and truly offers early detection, as written by Brenda Witt in an article called A Tool for Early Breast Cancer Screening. She goes on to say that this technology has been approved by the FDA as an adjunctive screening tool since 1982 and offers no radiation, no compression and no pain. For women who are searching for early breast cancer detection, digital infrared thermal imaging (DITI) may be of interest. According to Dr. Ariane Cometa, "Deep tumors of the breast are able to be found by thermography,"and has the ability to warn women up to 10 years before any other procedure that a cancer may be forming.

As written by Brenda Witt in her article, the technology works via Thermal cameras, which detect heat emitted from the body and display it as a picture on a computer monitor. These images are unique to the person and remain stable over time. It is because of these characteristics that thermal imaging is a valuable and effective screening tool. Tumors or other breast diseases measures warmer than surrounding tissue and can thereby alert a physician to a problem before a tumor is actually palpable. She goes on to say, Thermography is not limited by breast density and is ideal for women who have had cosmetic or reconstructive surgery, women who refuse mammography, or women who want clinical correlation for an already existing issue. Thermography, because it analyzes a developing process, may identify a problem several years before mammography. As we all know, early detection is important to survival.

A very useful graph, shown at www.breastthermography.com outlines the differences between mammography, medical infrared imaging (thermography), and ultrasound.  Here is a list of what thermography offers and its strong points:

1. No radiation, non-invasive, harmless.
2. Can be used as often as indicated to trace a problem, observe the effectiveness of treatment, or monitor the health of the breast over time.
3. Functional imaging. Detects physiologic changes. Cannot pinpoint the exact area of suspicion inside the breast.
4. Non-contact. Nothing touches the breasts.
5. Earliest method of breast cancer detection known.
6. Can detect a pathologic state of the breast up to 10 years before a cancerous tumor is found by any other method.
7. Has the ability to detect fast growing aggressive tumors.
8. In 7 out of 10 women, thermography will be the first alarm that something is happening.
9. A positive infrared image represents the highest known risk factor for the existence of or future development of breast cancer – 10 times more significant than any family history of the disease.
10. Due to the nature of infrared imaging, pre-cancerous and cancerous tumors as deep as the chest wall can be detected.

Still, not all doctors are sold on the test, reports Dr. Deanna Lites, and Radiation Oncologist Dr. Scott Tannehill warns, "Not all cancers are necessarily of different temperatures." Because of that, a Thermogram won't catch everything.  Experts warn that Thermography should not be used as the only method to detect breast cancer. The best approach is regular breast self-exams and mammograms. Kellye Lynn reports that the American Cancer Society, which cautions women about thermography, is saying, "No study has ever shown that it is an effective screening tool for finding breast cancer early and it should not be used as a substitute for mammograms." The article goes on to say, Dr. Cometa agrees that thermography should not replace mammography, but it is a useful screening tool when used along with it, and although FDA approved, thermography is considered experimental and is not covered by insurance.  Expect to pay about $200 for a screening and follow-up.

Photographs Source: www.americanjournalofsurgery.com