A new law in New Jersey helps women with a condition that puts them at higher risk of breast cancer get additional screenings - but it fails to require healthcare providers to inform women when they have the condition and might need those tests.
Advocates say the law is a step in the right direction but falls woefully short.
The law pertains to women who have dense breast tissue - a condition that makes mammograms harder to read because both dense tissue and cancer appear white on mammograms, making tumours harder to spot.
It is estimated that 40 per cent of women who get mammograms have dense breasts and 10 per cent of those have extremely dense tissue.
The new law requires insurance companies to pick up the tab for additional screenings such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging and three-dimensional mammography for women with extremely dense breast tissue.
Insurers must also cover testing when a patient has other risk factors, such as a family history of the disease, positive genetic testing, or a prior personal history of breast cancer.
The measure initially required that a letter be sent to women telling them they have dense tissue, so they could decide whether they wanted more testing.
Patient advocates and some physicians are concerned the law doesn't do enough to protect women.
Laurie Scofield, a Wayne resident, said her cancer went undetected for two years as she continued to ask her doctor about a lump in her breast.
Because her mammogram came back negative, Scofield was told it was probably a cyst.
By the time Scofield was diagnosed in 2010 she was 48 and had stage-three cancer.
She is "doing well" now but endured nearly a year of treatment that included chemotherapy, surgery and radiation.
"This law is a step in the right direction but it's similar to a patient getting a letter explaining the danger of high cholesterol but not saying whether you have it or not," Scofield said.
At present radiologists send mammogram results and a report to a patient's doctor, typically a gynaecologist.
