Mammogram

A mammogram is a breast x-ray.

The patient is asked to strip to the waist and stand in front of the specialist x-ray machine. Each breast will be rested in turn between two x-ray plates so that it is compressed and flattened.

Two images of each breast will be taken so that it can be seen from two different angles. This is sometimes uncomfortable or even painful, but it only lasts a few seconds.

Women under the age of 35, do not usually have mammograms as younger women's breast tissue is generally too dense to produce a good image.