Mammograms can offer a hint about heart disease risk so why isnt it included in results?

This might just be the breast-kept secret in women’s health.For people at average risk, most leading medical organizations recommend starting regular mammograms at age 40 to check for signs of breast cancer before symptoms appear.But that scan may reveal more than just how the girls are doing.A growing body of research suggests these routine images can also offer subtle clues about heart disease — the leading cause of death among US women.And yet, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard about it.That’s probably because, in most parts of the country, doctors aren’t required to tell patients when their mammogram shows signs of breast arterial calcification.Also known as BAC, the condition occurs when calcium builds up in the middle layer of the breast’s arterial walls.Traditionally, it’s been viewed as little more than an incidental finding on mammograms.

Several recent studies, though, have linked BAC to a higher risk of experiencing cardiovascular events down the road.In 2022, researchers in California found that women with BAC visible on their mammograms were 51% more likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke than those without it.They were also 23% more likely to develop cardiovascular disease of any kind, including heart disease, stroke, heart failure and disease affecting the peripheral arteries.In April, a study of 21,514 women found that the more BAC a woman had compared with others her age, the higher her subsequent risk of developing cardiovascular disease in the next 4.7 years.Importantly, having BAC does not mean a woman has heart disease or needs treatment.

Instead, researchers say it may serve as another clue that someone could be more likely to develop problems later in life.“We know that women are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of cardiovascular disease and have worse outcomes following a heart attack compared to men,” Matthew Nudy, an assistant professor at Penn State College of Medicine who was involved in t...