Utah women have some of the country’s lowest mammography screening rates

Anicka Slachta | | Radiology Business | Practice Management

Utah is among the five lowest states in the U.S. for mammography screening rates, Brigham Young University’s newspaper, The Daily Universe, reported this week.

Women who did seem to stick to yearly mammograms were more likely to be over 50 years old, earn more than $75,000 and have graduated college, the article states. Utah screenings are hurting the most in the Tri-County and Grand/San Juan areas.

“Going in for a yearly mammogram empowers me,” Dixie Sevison, BYU’s director of women’s resources, told the Universe. “I know I am being proactive in taking care of my health, and it also gives me a sense of peace knowing I’m okay.”

Sevison said Utah women may be dodging their annual screenings because of a lack of support from family and friends.

“When breast cancer is diagnosed early, the possibility of having a positive outcome is greater, she said. “To me, this makes going in for an annual mammogram screening a no-brainer.”

Read the full report here:

Utah mammography screenings low, new study reveals

""
Anicka Slachta

After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.

Related Content

US Radiology Specialists affiliate expands into new market
Navigating the radiology workforce shortage: 6 potential solutions
Radiologist rails against insurer’s refusal to cover key interventional service
Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliate rejects MRI contrast coverage, labeling it ‘investigational’
Radiology experts say state Medicaid rates must increase to improve imaging access
Can large language models break language barriers in radiology reports?

Around the web

Health Imaging
Nearly $800,000 settlement offered to family of man who died during MRI exam

The patient, who was being cared for in the ICU, was not accompanied or monitored by nursing staff during his exam, despite being sedated.

Cardiovascular Business
Global shortage of nuclear imaging isotopes may be over

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

Cardiovascular Business
‘A huge win’: CMS significantly increases Medicare payments for cardiac CT

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.