Radiation of Just Part of the Breast Can Stop Cancer's Return

THURSDAY, Dec. 12, 2019 -- A long-term study comparing two types of radiation treatment for early breast cancer found that accelerated partial breast radiation (APBI) appeared to do as well as standard whole breast radiation for keeping cancer at bay.

The study looked at 10-year recurrence rates. The findings mean the partial breast procedure may offer women another choice for treating early-stage breast cancer.

Breast Density Alerts Might Not Be Helping Women

TUESDAY, Dec. 31, 2019 -- Having dense breast tissue raises a woman's odds for breast cancer, so many states require providers to notify women if a mammogram finds they have dense breast tissue.

But a new study suggests that the notifications may be having little impact in alerting women to their added breast cancer risk.

AI Beat Humans in Spotting Breast Tumors

FRIDAY, Jan. 3, 2020 -- Machines can be trained to outperform humans when it comes to catching breast tumors on mammograms, a new study suggests.

Researchers at Google and several universities are working on an artificial intelligence (AI) model aimed at improving the accuracy of mammography screening. In the Jan. 1 issue of Nature, they describe the initial results: Computers, it seems, can beat radiologists both in detecting breast tumors and avoiding false alarms.

Study Links Hair Straighteners, Dyes to Breast Cancer

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 4, 2019 -- Could permanent hair dyes and chemical straighteners raise a woman's risk of breast cancer? A new study suggests they could.

Researchers analyzed data from nearly 47,000 U.S. women, followed for an average of more than eight years as part of the federally funded Sisters Study. All of the women had a sister who'd been diagnosed with breast cancer, but they didn't have breast cancer themselves at the start of the study.

Does MRI Screening Benefit Women With Extremely Dense Breasts?

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 27, 2019 -- Health experts already know that women with extremely dense breasts don't get the same benefit from mammography as women without very dense breast tissue. But what hasn't been clear is if MRI screening might spot cancers that mammography didn't.

Now a new study from Dutch researchers found that when MRI was used in between mammography appointments, the women in the study were half as likely to be diagnosed with an interval cancer. That's a cancer that occurs between mammography screenings.