Daijiworld Media Network - Australia

Australia, Mar 10: A new study published in the European Heart Journal suggests that routine mammograms used for breast cancer screening could also help identify women at risk of cardiovascular disease — the leading cause of death among women.

Researchers found that mammogram images often reveal calcium deposits in arteries within breast tissue, a condition known as Breast Arterial Calcification (BAC). These deposits can cause blood vessels to stiffen and are associated with a higher risk of heart-related conditions.

Using artificial intelligence, scientists analysed more than 120,000 mammography scans to quantify calcium buildup in breast arteries. The study found that women with more severe calcification were at significantly higher risk of heart attacks, stroke, heart failure and death.

The findings highlight a major public health opportunity, as over 40 million people undergo mammograms each year in the United States.

According to Mary Cushman, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, the approach could help educate women about heart disease risk during routine cancer screenings.

“If there is a way to educate women in a place where they already are, like when getting a mammogram, it could be a game changer,” she said.

Cushman, who was not involved in the study, noted that one of the most striking findings was the method’s ability to predict cardiovascular risk even in women younger than 50.

“It is a clarion call that younger women do have risk, that it can be detected, and that detection should lead to interventions to reduce that risk,” she added, while cautioning that mammograms should not replace standard cardiovascular screening.

The study was led by Hari Trivedi, associate professor of radiology at Emory University. Researchers analysed mammogram data from about 74,000 women treated at Emory Healthcare in Atlanta and nearly 50,000 women from Mayo Clinic facilities across Arizona, Florida, the Midwest and Rochester, Minnesota.

The team developed an AI algorithm to measure the level of calcium deposits in the breast arteries and categorised patients into four levels — from no calcification to severe.

Women in the severe category were found to have roughly twice the risk of experiencing a major cardiovascular event compared with those with no calcification, even after accounting for other factors such as age, race and known risk indicators.

Health experts say the findings could help improve early detection of cardiovascular disease, which has often gone under-recognised in women despite being the leading cause of death globally.