Nuclear medicine breast studies carry much higher radiation doses and risks than mammography

The most important point in my paper is that nuclear medicine breast studies such as breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI) and positron-emission mammography (PEM) carry much higher radiation doses and risks than mammography. In fact, a woman can get a lifetime of annual screening mammography starting at age 40, including 2 views of each breast, at lower or comparable dose and risk to a single BSGI or PEM exam. This is because BSGI and PEM involve injected radioisotopes that distribute to all organs of the body, while mammography uses externally applied low-energy x-rays that expose only breast tissue. As a result, BSGI and PEM involve doses and risks that are 20-40 times higher than a bilateral, 2-view mammography exam

Bibliographic Reference:

Hendrick RE : "Radiation Doses and Cancer Risks from Breast Imaging Studies", Radiology 2010 Oct;257(1):246-53

Ed Hendrick

Department of Radiology, University of Colorado-Denver, School of Medicine, Aurora, CO USA