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Radiology Regional Center selected for a nationwide clinical research study to determine 3D Automated Breast Ultrasound combined with routine screening mammography is more accurate than mammogram.

Radiology Regional Center, which has nine locations throughout southwest Florida, is the only clinical center in Southwest Florida to participate in the study. Officials are looking to treat 100 women a week for 15 months.

A participant would be responsible for paying for the mammogram but would get the ultrasound at no charge. A woman's breast density can interfere with a mammogram's ability to detect breast cancer at early and more easily treatable stages. To find out if your breasts are dense, you can ask for a past mammogram report and it will have that information.

Research indicates that women who have dense breasts are more likely to develop breast cancer in their lifetime than women who do not have dense breast tissue.

"We know that screening dense breasts with mammography alone is challenging," said Dr. Mary Kay Peterson, director of Women's Imaging at Radiology Regional Center and the principal investigator for the clinical research study. "The published literature has shown improved early detection of breast cancer when ultrasound is used in addition to mammography for women with dense breast tissue.

"If this study further demonstrates that success, it will be a major benefit in breast cancer screening."

The 3D ultrasound is a breast imaging technology that is less affected by a woman's breast density, and is currently FDA approved when used in combination with mammography. Unlike mammography, which uses radiation, ABUS uses sound waves at a safe frequency to create images of the internal breast tissue.

Source: Radiology Regional Center

Discuss more about Mammography in the Mammography user group.