Love Yourself Enough to Get An Annual Mammogram

February, the month of love. This is a great time to think of something positive we can do for ourselves. As women we are always doing for others first, our family, our friends, our jobs. But every once in a while we really do need to take care of ourselves.

One quick thing you can do , if you are 40 years old or more ( like some of us), is to make sure you are caught up on your latest mammogram screening or if you have never had one call and schedule one at your nearest Radiology center.

You don’t need an order from you doctor unless you are having a problem and need a diagnostic mammogram.

Why get a mammogram? Because finding a breast cancer early CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE! And your family, your friends and your coworkers want you  around for a long time!

Did you know that 1 in 8 of us will have breast cancer by the time we are ninety? I don’t know about you, but I have the cutest grandchildren and plan to live until I am 100.

Nearly 8 out of 10 breast cancers occur in women over the age of 50. A 70 year old is almost twice as likely to develop breast cancer as a women of 50, according to American Cancer Society. So we should have our yearly mammograms no matter how old we are, unless we are medically unable to do this test.

Are mammograms safe to do yearly? YES! Over the past 20 or so years, both the equipment and how the mammograms are done have greatly improved. The level of radiation exposure used today is very, very low.

Here at PinnacleHealth we have the latest in 3-D mammogram technology called Tomosynthesis and this type of mammogram can allow us to see through very dense breast tissue with better accuracy.

Almost all insurances provide coverage for a yearly mammogram and if you don’t have insurance.  PinnacleHealth also has a low cost program to help with the costs.

You can do this! Give yourself extra special attention  during this month of love. You deserve it!