It seems unfair, but just being a woman puts us at risk for breast cancer and that risk only increases as we age. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Avera McKennan wants you to help you take control of your breast health by getting annual mammograms.

Getting an annual mammogram (an X-ray picture of the breast) has become routine for Peggy Stromsness. She started getting them at the age of 35, which is recommended by the American Cancer Society if you have a family history of breast cancer. Age 40 if you don't.

Jill Schultz is the Breast Health Manager at the Avera McKennan Breast Care Center. She says, "As women get older they don't feel like they need to get mammograms every single year. when in fact the prevalence of breast cancer increases with are so it's very important to get a mammogram every year after the age of 40."

At the Avera McKennan Breast Care Center they use digital mammography machines. If you are younger than 50 and have dense breast tissue it can make a huge difference.

Dr. Josie Alpers is a radiologist with the Medical X-Ray Center and Avera McKennan. She says, "What it does is allows us to see all the way out to the skin and decreases the appearance of density of the breast tissue allowing us to see 15 to 27% more breast cancers in this group of women."

The biggest complaint women have with getting a mammogram is that the detector is hard and cold that's why the use of the MammoPad is a great invention.

"It acts as a cushion and it also helps hold the breast in place so we can get a better quality image, " Jill Schultz says.

Peggy knows 1 in 8 women will get breast cancer in their lifetime. If she's the one, she wants to know very early on since early detection is the best prevention and a mammogram is still the best screening tool to find it.

You can schedule your own mammogram appointment 322-MAMO or for more information check out Think Pink on Avera McKennan's website.