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Frequently Asked Questions
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Why does my doctor not approve of Thermography? She told me that
thermography was outdated and that it was considered investigational,
yet when I looked thermography up on the internet, the FDA says it is
an approved adjunctive diagnostic test. What’s up?
The answer to this question
is as simple as it is complex. I suggest that after reading this
response, you point your browser to the library at
www.breastthermography.org and read the articles, "Breast Thermal
Imaging the Paradigm Shift" and "Breast Thermal Imaging, a Responsible
Second Look" for more detailed explanation.
Now for a brief response. Doctors who tell patients that breast
thermography is investigational or not approved for diagnosis, are
simply wrong.
Whether this is a political position that even the doctor is not aware
of, or made in order to promote mammography, the statement is non the
less false.
Thermography has been approved by the US Department of Health,
Education and Welfare since the 1970's, and the US Food and Drug
Administration since the 1980's.
There are 3 primary reasons that thermography is not more understood
and accepted.
1. Thermography has been used fraudulently by under-trained and
un-licensed individuals bringing lots of "false positives" and "false
negatives" to the clinicians office. This has created confusion and
decreased confidence in thermal imaging.
2. Thermography often sees pathology many, many years before anatomical
testing, such as mammography, ultrasound or MRI. In this case, the
typical physician considers the thermogram a false positive, as they
can not confirm the findings with conventional testing. Studies now
reveal that the so called false positive thermogram will yield a cancer
finding years later in the exact location, as seen by conventional
testing. The false positive was not false at all, just "too right, too
early".
3. There is virtually no regulation of manufacturers who sell
thermography equipment or for doctors who utilize it, therefore little
clinical control is in place here in the United States. This makes it
difficult for legitimate and highly trained thermographers to build the
profession of thermal imaging and increase its credibility as there is
little to no accountability.
More information can be obtained at http://www.breastthermography.org
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