A central resource for breast imaging insights, practical guidance, industry references, and operational support: articles that span all programs and disciplines.
In 1992, the Mammography Quality Standards Act became the only federal law mandating quality oversight for a single diagnostic imaging modality. This is how Betty Ford's candor, failed voluntary accreditation, and congressional urgency combined to create the regulatory framework that still governs every mammography facility in the country.
Breast density describes the relative proportion of fibroglandular to fatty tissue visible on a mammogram. It simultaneously lowers mammographic sensitivity through a masking effect and functions as an independent risk factor for breast cancer. As of September 10, 2024, the MQSA Final Rule requires every facility to report density using a standardized four-category lexicon and include prescribed notification language in every patient lay letter.
Lost to follow-up (LTFU) is the operational state in which a patient with an unresolved positive mammogram assessment can no longer be reached after documented outreach has been exhausted. This article defines LTFU, distinguishes it from the earlier overdue state, quantifies its audit impact under MQSA, and outlines the closed-loop tracking architecture required to minimize its occurrence.
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a stage 0, noninvasive proliferation of abnormal cells confined within breast ducts. It is both a clinical entity with a non-obligate progression pathway to invasive cancer and a high-stakes audit outcome under MQSA. This article covers definition, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and the operational closed-loop tracking requirements every facility must meet.
PPV in mammography is measured at three distinct clinical stopping points. Learn how PPV1, PPV2, and PPV3 expose different operational failures in the breast imaging audit pathway under FDA-MQSA and ACR BI-RADS requirements.
A screening mammogram begins a pathway, not ends one. The Downstream Revenue Estimator by Mammologix models the full revenue picture of a mammography program across a multi-year horizon -- from base screening through diagnostic workup, biopsy, detection, and treatment -- with cited defaults and every assumption adjustable.
A complete, reproducible documentation of the Downstream Revenue Estimator's arithmetic: the three-tier revenue formulas, two-population detection logic, treatment blending, largest-remainder display rounding, a worked year-1 example, and the full 420-configuration validation matrix.
Multiple validated risk models exist, each built for different clinical questions and populations. This organized inventory covers every major tool -- absolute-risk calculators, mutation-probability models, imaging-based tools, and referral screens -- with a side-by-side comparison table for everyday clinical use.
Our team has supported breast imaging centers since 1995. If it's not here, we probably know the answer.