Every medical screening involves certain risk factors. The ones for a 3D mammogram are as follows:
Radiation exposure. We’re talking low radiation levels with any kind of mammogram because technicians use X-rays to take pictures of a woman’s breasts. It’s important for a woman to know this because a 3D mammogram involves slightly higher levels of radiation exposure than standard imaging simply because the 3D version combines 3D technology with 2D technology.
There are newer 3D mammogram imaging machines that can take 3D and 2D pictures simultaneously, which is believed to limit radiation exposure.
3D mammograms may detect something else entirely. It’s certainly possible that by having a 3D mammogram done, your doctor finds something abnormal. You’ll then need further testing, which may find that your abnormality was benign all along. This is called a false-positive. With a false-positive result, you’re likely to suffer unnecessary anxiety, which is never fun and might lower your quality of life as you wait for the results to come in.
Not all forms of cancer are found. Sometimes, a 3D mammogram fails to detect a specific cancer area, especially if the site is minute or in an obscure place.