October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month. As new technologies emerge to detect cancer, decisions about screening options can become more complicated. So what does the research say about 3D mammograms?

A 2019 study found that compared to traditional 2D mammograms, 3D mammograms offer fewer false positives and are more effective in women age 65 and older. Another recent study (2019) found that breast cancers found with 3D mammography were more likely to be smaller and node-negative compared to breast cancers found with standard digital mammography.

Dr. Sandra Brennan. Image courtesy of the MSK Digital Asset Library. Do not reuse.

Breast density also plays a role. Dr. Sandra Brennan, Director of Radiology at MSK Westchester, explains that 3D mammography is better at detecting masses in dense breasts than 2D mammography. Dr. Brennan explains that radiologists have long known about breast density, but that breast density notification laws have prompted this issue to come to the public’s attention. These laws, she says, “came about largely because of patient activism.”

As with all cancer screening questions, you should consult with your doctor. Learn more about mammograms and other types of breast exams offered at MSK.

• Researchers from Vanderbilt University studied how cancer cells conserve energy during metastatic migration. The “first study to quantify the energetic costs of cancer cells during metastasis” was published in Nature Communications.
• A team of engineers and cancer biologists from Ohio State University explored the effect of electromagnetic fields on breast cancer cell migration and created tools to hinder the spread of metastatic breast cancer cells  The new study which lays the foundation for further animal and human studies was published in Communications Biology.
• Researchers from Michigan State University and Stanford University discovered that nano-sized extracellular vesicles produced by healthy cells in human body can transport therapeutic agents (gene-directed enzymes, drug therapies) to cancer cells. This new approach shows great potential for future treatment strategies according to the authors of the study published in Molecular Cancer Therapeutics.
• New research from a team at Imperial College in London and their colleagues from Italy contributed to the debate on breast cancer recurrence after treatment with hormone therapies. Their findings suggest that adjuvant endocrine therapy, a type of hormone therapy, while killing some cancer cells, only puts others in a dormant state. This study was also published in Nature Communications.