Early Detection is the Key

Current breast cancer detection strategy in the United States still depends on clinical examination and mammography. Clinical examination has limitations with a sensitivity rate often below 65%. Mammography is promoted as the most reliable and cost-effective imaging modality, but its contribution continues to be challenged with persistent false-negative rates ranging up to 30%. By the time mammography picks up a tumor, it has been there for 6 - 8 years, or more. 85% of mammography initiated biopsies are negative and not all areas of the breast are visualized by mammography. In 2004 concerns about mammography accuracy have lead to the recommendation that “high risk” women undergo yearly MRI scans of the breasts in addition to mammography. This is a very costly procedure. It is also more difficult to interpret mammographic images in patients with dense breast tissue, those on hormonal therapy, and younger women who have fibrocystic changes and dense breast tissue.

Spitalier and associates followed 61,000 women using thermography over a 10 year period of time. The physicians involved noted “in patients having no clinical or radiographic suspicion of malignancy, a persistently abnormal breast thermogram represents the highest known risk factor for the future development of breast cancer.”
Active Cancer Cells Double in Number Every 90 Days
With This Hypothetical Model
90 day 2 cells
1 year
16 cells
2 years 256 cells (seen by Thermography)
3 years 4,896 cells
4 years 65,536 cells
5 years 1,048,576 cells
6 years 16,777,216 cells
7 years 268,435,456 cells
8 years 4,294, 967,296 cells (doubled 32 times and normally seen by Mammography at this stage)

Breast thermography is very accurate compared to other methods of detection and screening and has an average sensitivity and specificity of 90%. An abnormal thermogram was found to have a 94% predictive value. Thermography is not yet in wide-spread use, but it's use is increasing rapidly. The addition of Breast Thermography to the frontline of early breast cancer detection brings a great deal of good news for women.