According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among women and the second leading cause of cancer death among women. An estimated 207,090 new cases of invasive breast cancer were diagnosed among women in the US during 2010. An estimated 40,230 breast cancer deaths occurred in 2010, (39,840 in women and 390 in men). The risk of breast cancer increases as women get older, with the majority of breast cancer cases occurring in women older than age 50.
No one knows why some women develop breast cancer and others do not. While this is not an all inclusive list, other identified risk factors that may influence a woman's chance include:
Lifestyle risk factors that may influence a woman's chance of breast cancer include:
Evaluating your patient for breast cancer is a complex process. The Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool is a computer program developed by the National Cancer Institute. Health care providers can use this tool to estimate a woman’s chances of developing breast cancer based on several recognized risk factors. This tool estimates a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer over the next five years, as well as over her entire lifetime.
Go to the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool program.
Over the past several years, considerable developments have occurred in the area of evaluating and reducing breast cancer risk. Although there has been recent controversy in the medical literature regarding the value of screening mammography and breast self-examination, Independence Blue Cross (IBC) continues to support the ACS recommendations for screening mammography in women age 40 and older.
Mammography is not a capitated service, so your patients can go to the radiology site of choice. No referral is required; however, your patient will still need a prescription from you for the radiology site. Please remind your patients to refer to their benefit description material for the complete details of the terms, limitations, and exclusions of their coverage.