Thermography: A Perfect Alternative to Mammograms?

Thermography is gaining ground as a valid alternative to mammograms given that more women are seeking non-radiation alternatives for identification of breast anomalies amid a very x-ray happy medical community that seems unconcerned with long term exposure risk. But, are the benefits of thermography for real?

I myself have never had a mammogram. I’ve followed in the footsteps of my wise 86 year old mother who once said, “Why look for breast cancer with a test that can actually cause breast cancer?”

If only our conventional medical community made decisions using this much common sense!

By some estimates, up to 20% of all breast cancers diagnosed in the United States annually are actually caused by the cumulative radiation effects of mammograms. This data point makes the recommendation for annual or semi-annual mammograms after age 40 absolutely ludicrous!

If you don’t have breast cancer when you start screening with mammograms, you probably will years later after all that cumulative ionizing radiation exposure!

Another major problem with mammograms is the compression factor. This sometimes painful aspect of mammograms risks the spread of any breast cancer that may be present. This from Dr. Samuel Epstein MD, one of the world’s top cancer experts:

As early as 1928, physicians were warned to handle “cancerous breasts with care– for fear of accidentally disseminating cells” and spreading cancer. Nevertheless, mammography entails tight and often painful compression of the breast, particularly in premenopausal women. This may lead to distant and lethal spread of malignant cells by rupturing small blood vessels in or around small, as yet undetected breast cancers. (1)

So, what to do if you need to safely screen for breast cancer?

Thermography, or Medical Infrared Imaging, has been heralded by many in the alternative health community as a safe option to mammograms. Indeed, thermography is a very safe and effective breast screening technology. It very accurately identifies the vascular changes associated with breast cancer well in advance of when a mammogram would identify a problem. (2)

In addition, thermography is a much better choice than mammograms in these instances:

• Women on hormone replacement
• Mothers who are nursing
• Fibrocystic breasts
• Large breasts
• Dense breast tissue
• Breast implants

In these situations, there is much difficulty in reading mammograms accurately. When using thermography, however, breast differences do not cause any interpretation difficulties.

Here’s what Christiane Northrup MD, a fan of thermography, has to say:

“The most promising aspect of thermography is its ability to spot anomalies years before mammography.”

“Today, women are encouraged to get a mammogram, so they can find their breast cancer as early as possible. With thermography as your regular screening tool, it’s likely that you would have the opportunity to make adjustments to your diet, beliefs, and lifestyle to transform your cells before they became cancerous. Talk about true prevention.” (3)

Before you run to the phone and schedule your thermogram, however, there are a few more things you need to know.

Time for the reality check.

Thermography Pitfalls You Need to Know About

While thermography is definitely a helpful and nontoxic approach to detecting breast cancer at any stage, it is not the perfect alternative to mammograms as it is frequently portrayed.

First of all, thermography is rarely covered by medical insurance.  As a result, the typical fee of several hundred dollars for the initial screen with a required followup screen costing an additional one or two hundred dollars within 3-6 months is completely out of pocket for the vast majority of patients. A single thermogram each year after the initial 2 screenings is recommended – another expense.  For many women, this large personal expense is simply out of the question especially in the current economic environment.

Even in my home state of Florida where the law stipulates that all medical insurance providers provide policyholders with a free mammogram every 2 years for women aged 40-50 and an annual mammogram for women over 50 with no deductible or co-pay required, women still must pay out of pocket as no substitution of a thermogram for a mammogram is permitted.

Thermogram? You Might Be Forced to Have a Mammogram Anyway

A second very real problem with going the thermography route is that you frequently get forced into getting a mammogram anyway. All that money out of pocket and you still end up getting doused with radiation!

The reason is that thermography detects any breast anomalies not just cancer. An example is a benign cyst. So, women frequently end up at the gynecologist after having a thermogram which identified anything that looked remotely suspicious. This could be something as simple and common as a clogged milk duct.

Once at the gynecologist, women are shocked to learn that a mammogram is almost always required. Substituting a simple breast ultrasound as the first line diagnosis test to examine the anomaly is not allowed. You have to get a mammogram first even though mammograms are far less effective at identifying breast cancer!

It’s such a racket – I call it the Mammogram Mafia. Those mammograms are such a nice residual moneymaker for (some) GYNs. The situation is much like the kickbacks doctors receive for prescribing certain drugs. You didn’t actually think they would let you bypass it so easily did you?

A large out of pocket expense for a thermogram only to end up forced to have a mammogram is a source of extreme frustration for women trying to avoid mammograms in the first place.

UPDATE: Good news! Women can now get a annual breast ultrasound without a prescription. This means you can skip the mammograms FOREVER! And, a breast ultrasound is about half the price of a thermogram. More on how to schedule this service in this article about the benefits of  breast ultrasound instead of mammograms.

Are Thermograms Helpful At All?