subject: Breast Enlargement and Mammograms [print this page] enlargement, one of your concerns may be that the procedure may interfere with a screener's ability to detect breast cancer in its early stages. However, studies show that mammograms for women with breast implants seem to be as effective as those for women without. Some surgeons say that the reason for this is that, although the breast implant does obscure some of the breast, some of the breast is always obscured against the chest wall, so that the net effect is negligible. Another reason why mammograms for women with breast implants are effective is that they are performed in a more thorough manner.
Mammograms for Women with Breast Implants
At her mammogram appointment, a woman should always tell her screener if she has had breast enlargement with breast implants. This allows the screener to perform the appropriate procedure.
Women without breast implants typically receive screening mammography. This means that the breast is compressed and viewed from two angles, the cranio-caudal (from above), and medio lateral oblique, which goes through the breast at an angle. However, mammography of breasts with breast implants include supplemental views. This will include at least what are known as Eklund views. Eklund views are taken after the normal views with the breast compressed between the paddles with the implant in place. They involve pushing the breast implant toward the chest while the rest of the breast is held between the compression panels.
Breast implants are not harmed by the compression from either type of mammographic viewing.
Mammograms and Breast Enlargement with Fat Transplant
Recently, there has been a great deal of attention given to breast enlargement using transplanted fat. In this technique, fat is removed from elsewhere in the body and injected into the breast. This is not a new technique, but it has only recently received moderate endorsement from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
One of the main concerns that has kept breast enlargement with fat transplant from being widely accepted is the possibility that it will interfere with mammograms. Not all of the transplanted fat survives the procedure, and when the fat cells die they leave behind hardened calcium lumps, which can look suspicious on mammography films, leading to false alarms and unnecessary biopsies. However, some studies now suggest that with proper established baselines and advanced mammography techniques, screeners can tell the difference between residual calcium lumps from breast enlargement with fat transplant and possible cancers.
