Reply #38: You may be wrong about "all that radiation": [View All]

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Radiation exposure from mammograms: The modern mammography machine produces breast x-rays that are high in image quality but uses a low radiation dose (usually about 0.1 to 0.2 rads per picture). In the past there were concerns about radiation risks; today if there is a risk, it is very small.

Strict guidelines are in place to ensure that mammography equipment is safe and uses the lowest dose of radiation possible. Many people are concerned about the exposure to x-rays, but the level of radiation in modern mammography does not significantly increase the risk for breast cancer.

To put dose into perspective, if a woman with breast cancer is treated with radiation, she will likely receive a total of around 5,000 rads (a rad is a measure of radiation dose). If she had yearly mammograms beginning at age 40 and continuing until she was 90, she will have received 20 to 40 rads.

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_2_3X_Mammography_and_Other_Breast_Imaging_Procedures.asp?sitearea=PED&gclid=CPHRguGSnocCFS4kFQodFjxlsA