Jaime Lewis (Host): According to the American Cancer Society, women should start screening for breast cancer with a mammogram every year, beginning at age 40. At Jefferson Healthcare, state-of-the-art screening and diagnostic technology help physicians catch breast cancer in the earliest and most treatable stages. Today on To Your Health, we'll discuss the process and benefits of mammography with Dr. Christine Skorberg, Medical Director for the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic at Jefferson Healthcare, and we'll hear a bit about her background in the field.

This is To Your Health, a podcast from Jefferson Healthcare. I'm Jamie Lewis. Dr. Skorberg, would you start by introducing yourself and sharing your background?

Christine Skorberg, MD: Sure. I'm Dr. Christine Skorberg. I have a medical degree and I practice obstetrics and gynecology and I have practiced over 30 years. I went to medical school at the Chicago Medical School and then I did my residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. I have practiced for a short while in Chicago, and then I moved to Fort Collins, Colorado, and had a practice there for 20 years.

But my two partners, one had four boys, I delivered her last two, and she decided to not work as hard, and went to work at the Colorado State University Women's Clinic. She's doing a great job there. And then, my other partner had a baby and said she didn't know that it was going to be so much work. And I said, "Really?" And she moved back to Massachusetts to be close to family to help. And so, I didn't want to do just solo practice. So, I took the job out here at Jefferson Healthcare and it's been terrific.

Host: Okay. So, you are uniquely qualified to answer this question. At what age should a woman start scheduling mammograms for herself?

Christine Skorberg, MD: Well, I like and the American Cancer Society likes age 40 and they recommend a screening mammogram there at that age. And then, every one to two years, and I like once a year. Some breast cancers are present for seven years before they're big enough for us to feel them. And a mammogram, it's not always a hundred percent. It's just a screening. So if it misses it for the first year, it might pick it up the second year. That's why I like to do them every year. And they recommend that all the way through until age 75. And then, after that, it's kind of up to the patient, what she would like to do and feels comfortable doing.

Host: What are the benefits of getting a mammogram? I mean, why should I go and get one after I'm 40?

Christine Skorberg, MD: Well, breast cancer is the most frequent non-skin cancer in the world. And it's the most frequent cause of death from cancer in women worldwide. Here in the United States, we screen aggressively, starting at age 40, or even sooner if you have risk factors. And then, we treat aggressively, and women live. So, that is why we like to do mammograms, because we find the cancer early before it's even palpable, and it has a better chance of survival.

Host: Well, let's say I'm ready to start having my routine mammograms. How do I schedule an appointment and how should I prepare for that?

Christine Skorberg, MD: Well, you can come see your family practice doctor or your internist or us, the OB-GYN department. And we put the order in for the mammogram, and we give you the number to call the hospital, the radiology department, and you can schedule that appointment. And then, you come to the hospital. That's where we do the screening and that's where we have the mammography. And then, we start your screening that way.

Host: I know that screening for breast cancer has advanced in so many ways over the years. We've come a long way from the old days. What technology do you use at Jefferson Healthcare and how long does it take to get results?

Christine Skorberg, MD: We use the 3D mammography, which is what's recommended. And then if we find a suspicious area, we do what we call a diagnostic mammogram. So, a 3D mammogram takes two views, kind of head on and then laterally. And then, a diagnostic mammogram shows other views so that they get a better look at the area they're concerned about, and then they can follow that with an ultrasound also to give them more information. And sometimes we follow that up with a stereotactic needle biopsy, which we can do here. Dr. Joseph, our radiologist, can do that, which is wonderful. If the patient has a mass, a palpable mass, then they come over here to the surgery department and they can take a biopsy or excise the mass. And then, sometimes what they recommend is not even doing a biopsy or taking out the mass. They recommend an MRI. And an MRI is an imaging that actually sees the breast the best, but it's not economically feasible to do that as a screening once a year on everybody. So, that's all the various screenings that we have here, which is up to date across the country.

Host: Yeah, that sounds incredible. An incredible resource for women. Aside from screenings, what else can women do to be proactive about breast health?

Christine Skorberg, MD: Well, it's funny. I read an article on this last week because I thought, "Oh, well, I'll just see if anything's changed." And it was funny in this article, they said, "Oh, they don't recommend coming and having the gynecologist or the doctor doing a breast exam, or they don't recommend the patient doing a breast exam." And I have to tell you, I 100 percent completely disagree with that. I think it's really helpful to come see the doctor and review how to do a breast self-exam and then do a good breast exam here in the clinic. And then, I like my patients to do a breast exam, a self breast exam, which I teach them in the office every month because women are smart and we know our bodies and we can know when something changes. And if we feel a hard mass, then they know to come in and be seen right away and get it evaluated. Some breast cancers grow rapidly and are not picked up by a mammogram. The mammogram last year might be negative and then a woman feels a palpable mass and comes in and evaluates and it actually is breast cancer and we're still finding it early. So, I highly recommend coming to your doctor and having a breast exam once a year and also learning how to do a self breast exam and do that at least monthly.

Host: I like how you put that. Well, thank you, Dr. Skorberg, for shedding light on this obviously very important subject.

Christine Skorberg, MD: Well, you're welcome.

Host: To learn more about mammography and other screening technology, visit jeffershealthcare.org/imaging. I'm Jamie Lewis, and this is To Your Health, a podcast from Jefferson Healthcare.