There is some new technology on the horizon for women. For many years the gold standard for breast screening has been the mammogram. However, while many doctors believe the mammogram has saved lives the biggest problem has been the discomfort which results from the required compression of breast tissue.
A new technology called digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) may do a better job of detecting breast cancer but without the discomfort. With DBT, an x-ray tube moves in an arc around the breast taking several pictures and different angles in about 5 seconds. The result is a 3 dimensional image of the breast.
The only bad news is that the FDA has yet to review and approve this new technology. However, we may not have to wait long as the FDA may approve the technology this year and women may begin to see the availability of the DBT as early as 2008.
Read more about this new technology: