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Screening tests may save lives — so when is it time to stop?
Women's Health
What type of breast screening do you need?
- By Maureen Salamon, Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch
Find out when mammography, ultrasound, and MRI should be used alone or together to detect cancer.
You’ve undoubtedly heard the mantra: mammograms save lives. And it’s true — screening mammograms lower breast cancer death rates in women 40 and older by 40% when compared with no screening. The imaging test is still considered the gold standard to find breast cancer early, when it’s most treatable.
But that’s only part of the picture. Even if you diligently schedule an annual mammogram, you might also need other types of imaging, depending on your individual risk factors.
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About the Author

Maureen Salamon, Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch
Disclaimer:
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