If you’re under age 40, which is when it’s recommended that women begin having screening mammograms, you may think you are too young to get breast cancer—but that’s not true.

While breast cancer in younger women is rare, it is the most common cancer among women ages 15 to 39. And certain kinds of breast cancer are on the rise among young women. Overall, about 11 percent of all breast cancers occur in women younger than 45, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As a reminder, all mammograms are covered with the III-A medical plans.

Last month, a new FDA regulation went into effect requiring all mammography facilities in the U.S. to notify women of their level of breast density. Although many centers have already been doing this for several years, the FDA regulation expands the requirement to all breast centers across the country.

With the new regulation, many women may have questions about what exactly breast density is and how it impacts their risk of developing breast cancer. Radiologists on the NAPBC board offered insight into what women should know about breast density and why it matters.

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