What to Expect as a Mammographer
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
Now is a great time to be a mammographer, because employment is predicted to grow faster than average. There is great demand for employees in the health care field in the U.S., largely because the
number of older people is growing larger. This blog will offer information about the field of mammography, so that those considering it can make a more informed decision.
The main thing that a mammographer does is to take low dose x rays of patients’ breasts. A mammographer has a lot of patient contact, because they explain the mammography procedure to patients, position patients, and then perform the actual mammogram. A mammographer must be good with people because the patients they come into contact with are often anxious about the procedure, the possible results, or both. A mammographer needs to be able to set patients at ease and answer questions for patients.
A mammographer can expect to be on his/her feet much of the time. Mammographers often have to position machines, so there is a risk for carpel tunnel syndrome and neck and back strain. Also, a mammographer will sometimes work in darkened rooms, so eye strain can be a risk. Most mammographers work 40 hours per week, but flexible schedules are common.
To become a mammographer, one needs to complete an associate or bachelor’s degree in mammography. It is also possible to obtain an associate or bachelor’s degree in radiography, then get a certificate in mammography afterwards. Often, a mammographer who wants to be in a managerial position will need to complete a bachelor’s degree. If a mammographer wants to just work in the field, then then it is usually not necessary to complete a bachelor’s degree, because an associate’s will suffice.
Learn about hiring a mammographer or find a job as a mammographer.
Source:
- December 18, 2007. Radiologic Technologists and Technicians. U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos105.htm
Causes for the Increasing Mammographer Shortage
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
Clinics across America are seeing longer waiting times than ever before, and appointments are being scheduled months in advance. This can causedelays in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Patients also experience more anxiety about mammograms, because they are having to wait so long to schedule them, and then they wait longer in the waiting room too. The cause of these increased wait times is due to the fact that mammography is simply not very profitable. Because mammography is not profitable, there are shortages of mammographers. Radiologists are less likely to choose to specialize in mammography, and hospitals are less likely to assign radiologists to to mammography if the mammography does not pay for itself. Research is also suffering, because there aren’t many radiologists who will research mammography knowing they will lost money.
This is very sad, because women who are 40 years old or older and who get regular mammograms are at a 30-40% less likely to die from breast cancer. Demand for mammograms is high, because so many women now know the value of seeing a mammographer.
The reason that mammography is not cost effective for most hospitals is that the US government sets mammography reimbursement rates for reasearchers below the costs of performing a study. Medicare pays about 67 dollars for a screening mammogram and 80 dollars for a diagnostic mammogram. This is compared to 170-225 dollars that women with no insurance would pay. These medicare reimbursement rates have only increased about 1% per year, and they have not kept up with inflation, necessary replacements of outdated equipment, expenses due to federal regulation, and quality assurance costs.
Learn about hiring a mammographer, or finding a job as a mammographer.
Source:
- Farnsworth, Leslie (2000) Mammography at the Crossroads: Experts Fear Technique’s Future in Jeopardy. Medscape Today, http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/420463
What is the Best Age to See a Mammographer?
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
Most people agree that women over age 50 should be given a mammogram even if they have no reason to suspect breast cancer, but it is debated whether a woman in her 40’s in the same situation should get a 
mammogram. This blog will focus on whether women in their 40’s would benefit from seeing a mammographer.
In the United States one of the leading causes of death in women in their 40’s is breast cancer. However, only 2 percent of women will get breast cancer in their 40’s. So, is it worth the risks of mammography for all women in their 40’s?
The risks of a woman starting to visit a mammographer in her 40’s are more that you might guess. First, a woman who does not have cancer may get cancer later due to the radiation involved in a mammogram. This has not been proven, but logic would indicate that it is possible. Next, false positives are extremely common, occurring 20-56 percent of the time. When a woman gets a mammogram and has a false positive she may suffer emotionally and she will also probably need a biopsy or other unnecessary procedure. Also, over diagnosis is possible. Over diagnosis is when breast cancer is found, but it is so small and slow growing that it would not have shortened the woman’s lifespan. Also, a woman may get a false positive from her mammogram, and as a result, she may not see a mammographer as quickly as she otherwise would when a lump is felt. This could result in more advanced breast cancer. Lastly, mammograms are painful for may women. Although, studies show that this does not prevent women from getting a mammogram in the future.
The benefits of a woman visiting a mammographer in her 40’s are plentiful too. It has been found that women in their 40’s may see as much as a 15% decrease in breast cancer mortality as a result of mammography if it is done every 1 to 2 years after 14 years. However, studies to determine this are very tricky and should not be completely trusted. Another pro of starting mammograms early is that if cancer is detected early, the treatment will be less aggressive to cure it, resulting is less damage due to treatment.
The conclusion is not clear. It has been shown that women in their 40’s will reduce risk of death due to breast cancer if they see a mammographer every year or two. However, it has also been shown that women in their 40’s who get regular mammograms are more likely to undergo unnecessary procedures due to false positives, anxiety due to false positives, extra radiation exposure, and unwarrented discomfort.
Learn about hiring a mammographer.
Source:
- Armstrong, Katrina; Moye, Elizabeth; Williams, Sankey; Berlin, Jesse A.; Reynolds, Eileen (2007, April 3) Systematic Review of Mammography in Women Age 40-49 Years. Annals of Internal Medicine, 516-526 http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/ehost/pdf?vid=5&hid=13&sid=0c832abb-300d-47d2-be2e-d0ba0b23389b%40SRCSM1
Mammographers are Imaging More Men
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are no longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
Often when people think of breast cancer they think of women, not men. However, over the past three decades the number of men with breast cancer has grown. Mammographers need to know how to make men feel comfortable during an exam, how to best perform an exam on a man, and the facts about breast cancer in men.
The obvious challenge a mammographer faces when scanning a man’s breast is that there is usually not a lot of breast to work with. It can be a challenge for a mammographer to get the breast into the compression device and to get it to stay while being scanned. Some mammographers have found quite unique methods for scanning men, including using a cooking spatula to hold the breast in place.
Another thing that mammographers find hard about scanning a man’s breast is that they are often hairy, and so the skin slips during compression. Mammographers find that a spatula is apparently helpful to deal with this too.
Also, mammographers find that men have larger pectoral muscles than women in general. Mammographers can use different views to get good images to get past this.
Finally, mammographers have a hard time setting many men at ease enough to perform the exam. It doesn’t help that most waiting rooms that men have to wait in before seeing a mammographer are decorated in very feminine ways.
There are many issues mammographers face when imaging men, but men do have an advantage over women in one case. Some mammographers make a point of calling men out of the waiting room sooner than they would a woman, so that the man doesn’t have to feel self conscious in front of all of the women for too long.
Learn about hiring a mammographer.
Source:
- Stanislaw, Stacy (2007, December 10) Breast Cancer: It’s a Guy Thing Too. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Thereapy Professionals, 13-15
How CT Technologists, MRI Technologists, Mammographers and Ultrasonographers Are Affected by Obesity
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are no longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers thirty percent of American adults to be obese, and many areas of imaging are struggling to provide these people with good images and equipment that fits them.
Excess fat often impacts image quality, causing the patient to need more tests and sometimes a longer hospital stay. Also, equipment is stressed more and needs to be replaced more often when being used on obese patients.
The larger the body, the harder it is for an ultrasonographer to get a clear picture. Also, it is more physically demanding for an ultrasonographer to image an obese person, because they must push as close to the internal structures as possible, so if a person is very overweight, the ultrasonographer has to push as far into the excess fat as they can.
As long as the patient fits into the machine, a CT technologist or MRI technologist isn’t affected as much as an ultrasonographer, but there are still issues. A CT technologist can adjust the scan time and range to image large patients more successfully, but this requires that th CT technologist be very knowledgeable and it requires that a larger dose of radiation be given to the patient. MRI technologists will probably be impacted by large patients the least, because machines are coming out in models offering better service for large patients.
Large patients are also a challenge for a mammographer because positioning is tricky and patients get a false positive twenty percent more often than normal or underweight patients do.
There are some advances being made to improve imaging for large patients, but they come at a higher health care cost.
Learn about hiring a CT technologist, MRI technologist, mammographer, or ultrasonographer.
- Long, Sarah (2006, October 2) Limited by Body Habitus. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Thereapy Professionals, 21-23
New Technology for Mammographers
This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are no longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.
Mammography is the best known way to screen for breast cancer, but it does have limitations. It misses 10-15 percent of breast cancers, and even more when women have dense breasts or implants. Breast-Specific Gamma Imaging (BSGI) can be used more effectively on patients with dense breasts or implants. It can also be used to further study abnormalities or identified malignancies already discovered by a mammography or biopsy.
The process is best suited to experienced mammographers, because it involves a special room set up, handling or isotopes, and injecting the patient. The patient must be imaged shortly after being injected with the isotope, as the dose will decay about 10 percent per hour. The isotope accumulates differently in cancerous tissue than it does in normal tissue. If any abnormalities are seen the patient often needs a follow-up ultrasound.
Learn more about hiring mammographers.
Source:
- Tuttle-Kuhm, Jane and Raub, Joyce (2008, February 4) BSGI for Mammographers. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Thereapy Professionals, 22-24
