TRICARE Expands Breast Cancer Screening Options
The best way to contain breast cancer is to detect it early. TRICARE has expanded the screening options available for women at high risk of developing the disease.
TRICARE has added coverage for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) screening for breast cancer as a clinical preventive service for women in high-risk groups.
“An MRI is a clearly superior tool for screening the highest risk women for breast cancer,” said Army Maj. Gen. Elder Granger, deputy director of the TRICARE Management Activity. “We want these women to have every chance to detect any cancer at the earliest possible stages.”
Breast cancer is the third most common cancer among TRICARE beneficiaries and the second most common cause of cancer death for women in the United States. Your level of risk can be impacted by factors including age, family history and race. Your doctor can advise you about individual risk factors, but even women of average or low risk must be vigilant against this disease.
Breast MRIs are recommended as an annual screening procedure for women age 35 or older who are considered at high risk of developing breast cancer by American Cancer Society© guidelines, even if no symptoms are present. A woman is considered to be at high risk if she has a:
- BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation
- First-degree relative (parent, child or sibling) with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation
- Lifetime risk of approximately 20 percent to 25 percent or greater as defined by accepted models that are largely dependent on family history (ask your doctor)
- History of chest radiation between age 10 and age 30
- History of Li-Fraumeni, Cowden or Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, or a first-degree relative with one of these syndromes
“The availability of MRI screenings does not reduce the importance of regular examinations,” Maj. Gen. Granger stressed. “All women over 39 years old need to get those annual mammograms. The key to dealing with cancer is early detection.”
TRICARE coverage of breast MRIs is retroactive to March 1, 2007. All TRICARE Prime beneficiaries age 30 and older who meet the criteria for a breast MRI are covered. If you are a qualified beneficiary and received a breast MRI on or after March 1, 2007, and your claim was denied, the claim may be resubmitted for reimbursement.
 Common Symptoms of Breast Cancer
Common symptoms of breast cancer include changes in how the breast or nipple feels, including:
- A lump or thickening in or near the breast or in the underarm area
- Nipple tenderness
- A change in how the breast or nipple looks
- A change in the size or shape of the breast
- A nipple turned inward into the breast
- The skin of the breast, areola or nipple being scaly, red or swollen; or having ridges or pitting so that it looks like the skin of an orange
- Nipple discharge (fluid)
Five Reasons to Get a Mammogram
- Mammograms can find lumps up to two years before they can be felt.
- When breast cancer is found early, 90 percent of women treated have a five-year or longer survival rate.
- Mammograms are the best form of early detection.
- Information leads to action.
- A mammogram could save your life.
|
