What is a mammogram?

A mammogram is an x-ray exam of the breast. It is used to detect and evaluate breast changes.

X-rays were first used to examine the breasts more than 90 years ago. But modern mammography has only existed since the late 1960s, when the first x-ray machines used just for breast imaging became available. Since then, the technology has advanced a lot, and today’s mammogram is very different even from those of the mid-1980s.

The special type of x-ray machine used for mammograms produces lower energy x-rays. These x-rays do not go through tissue as easily as those used for routine chest x-rays or x-rays of the arms or legs, and this improves the contrast of the image. Mammograms today expose the breast to much lower doses of radiation compared with devices used in the past.