This week on Health Watch, we’re talking about breast cancer, in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Self exams and mammograms are the first line of defense in early detection, but mammogram results sometimes require additional testing.

Dr. Phil Evans, director of the Southwestern Center for Breast Care at UT Southwestern Medical Center, says ultrasound is a viable option for supplemental screening for high-risk women because it’s widely available, non-invasive, doesn’t expose patients to radiation and is less expensive than magnetic resonance imaging. However, ultrasound does have a higher false-positive rate when just one ultrasound screening is performed. Ultrasound involves sound waves being sent through the breast to create an image of the breast tissue. Studies have shown that it detects more lesions than mammography alone.