Know the Facts

Listen to Solis Mammography’s Medical Director, Dr. Andrea Parada, as she discusses why some women have a higher risk of breast cancer.

Who has a higher risk of breast cancer?

• Women whose period started at an early age
• Women who did not have children or who had children later in life
• African American women and women of eastern Jewish descent
• Women with dense breast tissue that makes it difficult to see small breast cancers on a mammogram
• Women with gene mutations that may predispose them to developing breast cancers

There are multiple factors that determine a woman’s risk for breast cancer, which help define her personal lifetime screening regimen. The American College of Radiology (ACR) notes that risk factor profiling and evaluation should occur no later than age 30 for all women, so every woman has the knowledge she needs to make informed choices about her breast health. If a woman is of average risk, with no family history, she can begin annual screening at age 40. But if she is high risk due to personal or inherited risk factors, her doctor may recommend earlier screening along with supplemental screening, such as ultrasound or MRI, in addition to mammography.