If a mass is suspicious on a mammogram, the doctor will further evaluate it using breast ultrasound or a biopsy technique to remove some tissue for examination under a microscope. However, small white specks called calcifications can also appear on mammogram films. Calcifications are tiny mineral deposits within the breast tissue or breast arteries. They are usually benign, but a number of recent studies are focusing on these calcifications as indicators of not only cancer, but also of a higher risk for heart disease.
Calcifications appear as white specks on mammograms.
Macrocalcifications are coarse and somewhat larger calcium deposits that most likely represent changes in the breast due to aging of the breast arteries, old injuries, or inflammations. Macrocalcifications are found in about 50 percent of women over the age of 50, and in about 10 percent of women under the age of 50. The shape and arrangement of these microcalcifications help the radiologist judge the likelihood of cancer being present. This could serve as an important early warning sign for heart disease. Dr. Marion Jabczenski of the Breast Evaluation Center in Phoenix, Arizona studied mammograms from 40 patients that showed breast artery calcifications.