- Women with dense breast tissue.
- Women who want their entire breast scanned.
- Women with breast implants.
- Pregnant or nursing women.
- Younger women who want a detailed baseline before age 40.
- Men who have concerns about breast cancer.
The Automated Whole Breast Ultrasound will scan your whole breast including your upper chest wall, under your arms and lymph nodes. Our radiologist will read the scans. If there is anything seen on our scan that is concerning, we will do an additional diagnostic ultrasound using a hand-held ultrasound of those areas. If after the diagnostic ultrasound our radiologist determines a biopsy is needed, we will refer you onto a breast surgeon or your primary care provider if you prefer.
No it does not have radiation. It utilizes sound waves instead of x-ray technology. It has zero negative impact to the body.
No. This screening is gentle and requires no compression.
Yes. A man who is concerned about breast cancer or has a genetic or family history that requires screening can receive this imaging. It is both safe and comfortable for men.
Ultrasound utilizes sound waves and is radiation free. It is the same technology used for prenatal imaging. If it is safe for your baby, it is safe for you.
The cost of a bilateral breast screening is $450. A thyroid screening is $250. A combined breast and thyroid screening is $650 (a $50 saving). We accept cash, credit card, and either HSA or FSA cards as payment. This fee also includes a diagnostic ultrasound at KVINNA if our radiologist determines one is needed to look at something more closely.
This screening is FDA approved as an adjunct to mammography. It is meant to be supplemental imaging to your yearly mammogram. Although, we do not require a mammogram to receive an ultrasound screening.
Ultrasound utilizes sound waves to create the images and mammograms are done by x-ray technology. This safe screening does use compression or radiation. Unlike a mammogram, it also scans the entire breast tissue; the axilla (under the arm & lymph nodes), sternum and clavicular areas.
This screening is less operator-independent with a larger field-of-view. This ultrasound is highly automated and reproducible. It captures many more images than a tech could ever capture with a handheld ultrasound alone. It also reduces human error and potential inconsistency.
Dense breast tissue is one of the strongest common risk factors for developing breast cancer. Having dense breasts increases a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer by four to six times and 71% percent of breast cancers are found in dense breasts.
Nearly 50% of all women have dense breast tissue. 74% of women in their 40’s have dense breast tissue. This percentage tends to decrease with age.
Both dense breast tissue and cancer appear white on a mammogram, creating a dangerous camouflage effect called “masking effect” and creates a dilemma for radiologists whose goal is to find breast cancer as early as possible.
Automated whole breast ultrasound is a FDA approved adjunct screening solution. This technology uses a robotic process that captures thousands of high-resolution images in rows that are then stitched together into a movie by software that the radiologist then reads. This powerful process allows small invasive cancers to be caught early.
You can self-refer without a doctor’s permission or insurance pre-approval. We will then send results to your primary care provider after our radiologist has read the study and completed the report.
The largest killer of women is breast cancer starting at age 34. We suggest starting your baseline screenings in your early 30’s. Especially those women with dense breast tissue or a family history of breast cancer.
Currently, it is not mandated by insurance to be covered in the State of Washington. We do provide a Super Bill that you can submit to your insurance provider for reimbursement. Most women have been able to get partial or full reimbursement.
A licensed and highly trained breast radiologist will read your images and write the report.
In 2008, SonoCiné AWBUS received FDA clearance as an adjunct to mammography– and was further validated by two peer-reviewed studies published in the journal, European Radiology in 2009 and 2010. The earlier of the two studies was recognized as the second-most cited paper that year, and has since been cited over 400 times. This paper concluded that SonoCiné AWBUS finds twice as many cancers as mammography alone, and three times as many small, invasive cancers (10mm or less).
Mammography is an x-ray technology, has painful compression, and misses 50% of the small, easily treatable cancers in women with dense breast tissue or implants.
SonoCiné uses no x-rays, has no painful compression, and reliably finds 4-10mm breast cancers in all breast tissue types and women with implants.
Handheld Ultrasound is a conventional handheld ultrasound, which is limited by the variability of the technician doing the screening, can miss many of the small, easily treatable 4-10mm cancers in women with dense breast tissue or implants. Handheld ultrasound does not capture the entire breast and takes far fewer images than SonoCiné.
SonoCiné is automated and screens 100% of the breast tissue. Its automated imaging captures 3,000-5,000 images in a consistent and uniform system.
MRI requires a heavy metal injection, and its safety is now being questioned by the FDA. MRI is an expensive, lengthy procedure, yielding many false positives.
SonoCiné is an inexpensive short procedure, and reliably finds 4-10mm breast cancers, SonoCiné creates no negative impact on the body.
Magnetic Breast Imaging (MBI) requires a whole-body radioactive isotope injection, and is expensive.
SonoCiné requires no toxic injections.
Tomosynthesis (also called 3D mammography) uses x-rays, requires compression, and finds far fewer 4-10mm breast cancers. When combined with mammography, the radiation dose is greater than a mammogram alone.
SonoCiné reliably finds 4-10mm breast cancers, doesn’t use x-rays–and uncomfortable compression.
ABUS (GE & Siemens) fails to adequately screen the entire breast, missing the axilla. It is frequently painful and finds far fewer 4-7mm breast cancers. ABUS is unable to find cancer in women with implants and is not as effective for women with small breasts.
SonoCiné screens 100% of breast tissue, has no painful compression, and reliably finds 4-10mm breast cancers in women with all breast sizes and densities, as well as, breasts with implants.