Breast Thermography
Breast cancer is a serious health risk for women and it is something that they need to be on the lookout for. The earlier that breast cancer is found the better the results are going to be and the better your treatment options are. This is why ways of screening for cancer are so important. The problem is most of the means for doing this are very unpleasant. Breast thermography has started to become a popular option since it is very good at finding early signs of cancer and it is a relatively painless experience.
Breast thermography is simply based on measuring the temperature of the body. In this case the temperature of the breasts are being measured. This allows doctors to get a picture of what is going on inside based on the differences in heat. This technique can be used on any part of the body in order to get a picture of what is going on but far and away the most common use is to screen for breast cancer. When screening for cancer they are normally looking at the flow of blood. This will give them an idea of where a problem might be occurring.
The theory behind breast thermography is that areas where cancer might be developing will have a higher level of blood flow. This is because the cancer cells need the extra nutrients in order to grow. Since blood is normally warmer than the tissue around it this means that an area that is seeing more blood flow will have a higher temperature. This is an indication that something is not right. It may not necessarily be cancer but it is something that needs to be looked at. It is a good way to spot potential trouble spots for further examination.
Breast thermography is not a stand alone tool for diagnosing breast cancer. It is really a screening tool. There are actually lots of reasons that there could be an increase in the blood flow to a certain area. It could be an infection or a disease or trauma, or it could be cancer. There is really no way to know without a more thorough follow up exam. The real benefit of breast thermography is that it provides a very good early warning of the possibility of cancer.
The main reason that breast thermography provides such a good warning for cancer is that it is so easy to administer the exam. This means that it is much easier to get women to take the exam. It is not something that needs only be limited to at risk women; all women can use breast thermography. It doesn't involve radiation or compression and it is non-invasive. It is also quick which makes it ideal for screening large groups of women. Breast thermography also provides an early warning because it is looking for an increase in blood flow rather than cancer itself. This usually shows up much earlier than a tumor would.