My mammogram came back that I need additional views.?

My mammogram came back with: tiny nodular focal asymmetry within the lateral left breast middle depth on CC view Without Distinct Corresponding Abnormality on the 90 degree laeral view. Does anyone know what this means?? I have to return for an additional view.

I forgot to add in my details thah I am 56 yrs. old & all my mammos in the past have heeen mormal & I have not ever taken Hormone replacement.

When we do a routine mammogram, we do two images of each breast. The CC (cranio-caudal) view is the image we get when we compress the breast from the top to the bottom. The other view is usually the MLO (medio-lateral oblique) view. It sounds like this facility did a Lateral (breast compressed from side to side) view, either in place of the MLO or in addition to the MLO, which is 90 degrees from the CC view.

In any event, the radiologist report is saying that there is an area in the left breast, towards the side of the breast nearest your armpit , which may have an abnormality. This is seen on the CC view of the breast. BUT, this area does not look abnormal on the Lateral view. When we see an abnormal area on ONE view only, it is very likely that this is not a cancerous finding. It could very well be that you have some dense tissue, that when compressed from top to bottom, appears as a mass, because it is stacked up. This is called superimposition of tissue. A true mass in the breast is seen on any mammographic image you take.

The additional view will probably be a cone compression view. This is an image taken of just the area in question. A smaller paddle is used to compress that area. A true mass or lump will not change shape with compression. A normal area of breast tissue will spread out and "disappear" with cone compression. The goal of the mammographer is going to be showing that this area changes with compression.

You don't state your age, but eveyone has some dense breast tissue, and young women have a lot of dense breast tissue. Dense tissue appears white on the x-ray film....and so do all signs of breast cancer (both masses/lumps or calcifications). You cannot see white pathology through white, dense tissue. It is like trying to see a white volleyball in a the snow in a photograph. Sometimes, compression views are needed in these cases, just to ensure nothing is "hiding" behind that white tissue.

It does not sound to me like you should start worrying just yet. I am betting that after your additional views, you will discover everything is normal. Best wishes to you!

what it really means is they see something that may or may not be something, and they just want to check and be sure. This can happen right after you give birth, stop nursing, gain or lose a lot of weight, you could have developed a caffeine sensitivity or allergy, you could be processing lactic acid improperly, or you might have a benign or malignant cancer. Most of the time what they see is not cancerous, so don't get too excited yet. Let them do the view, and consider getting a second opinion (going to a different medical facility for a new mammogram). There might also have been something wrong with the film - although they probably wouldn't tell you that - my friend is a nuclear med person and has told me that there is a very minimal fail rate on the films, so they do occasionally ask for a new view just to be sure.

Good luck

I have been through that. there was a tumor in my breast. had it removed...all ok

It could even be a wrinkle!! Don't worry until you know more - and even then don't worry. Worrying in useless! Just get it done again, and go from there. Chances are excellent it's nothing. But if it is, come back here and we'll talk you through it!