Dr. Cometa's Wellness Center - where conventional and complimentary medicine blend to create wellness.

A Review of Thermography

In 1982, the FDA approved breast thermography as an adjunctive diagnostic breast cancer screening procedure. This technology has undergone extensive research since the 1950’s. Although your doctor may not know it, there are over 800 peer-reviewed studies on breast thermography in the index-medicus literature. It is unfortunate, but many physicians still hesitate to consider thermography as a useful tool in clinical practice. This is likely due to the fact that the physical and biological basis of thermography are not familiar to most physicians. Physicians are trained in reference to anatomy, not thermodynamics and thermokinetics.

For a list of citations regarding thermography, please email us.

View our Thermography Photo Gallery

The Bottom Line:

● An abnormal thermogram is 10 times more significant as a future risk factor for breast cancer than a first order family history of the disease.

● A persistent abnormal thermogram carries with it a 22x higher risk of future breast cancer.

● An abnormal infrared image is a single most important marker of high risk for developing breast cancer.

● Breast thermography has the ability to detect the first signs that a cancer may be forming up to 10 years before any other procedure can detect it.

Click here to read our Thermography Fact Sheet

Why is Thermography Better Than Mammography?

An abnormal thermogram is the single most important marker of high risk for developing breast cancer. Breast thermography has the ability to detect the first signs that a cancer may be forming, up to 10 years before any other procedure can detect it.

Breast Cancer Screening

Early Detection Saves Lives!

What is thermography?

▪ A non-invasive procedure which uses an infrared camera to take pictures of your infrared image

▪ Your Digital Infrared Thermal Image (DITI) is used by a health care practitioner to help diagnose pathology in your body

Why use thermography?

▪ SAFETY! There is no radiation involved with the technology

▪ As a non-invasive technology, there is no contact with your body

Total body thermal imaging

▪ The Digital Infrared Thermal Image (DITI) of the whole body can be a helpful evaluation and assessment tool

▪ Detect abnormalities such as tumors, injury, and inflammation on the organs, musculoskeletal system, and nervous system

▪ Thermal Imaging detects changes when other studies can not because it detects changes is physiology, not anatomy

Other advantages of breast thermography

Certain circumstances often interfere with mammography accuracy. This often leads to more mammography, ultrasound, or tissue biopsy!

▪ Fibrocystic Breasts

▪ Healthy and/or young glandular breast tissue

These circumstances do not interfere with thermography!

Mammography vs. thermography for women at high breast cancer risk

▪ When the patient is getting early mammography to detect breast cancer because she has a strong family history

-Young, healthy breasts do not demonstrate early cancer well on mammogram and do not interfere with early detection in thermography

-Why radiate breast tissue early (cancer promoting!) if it's less accurate than getting a thermogram?

Does insurance reimburse thermography?

▪ This depends on the body area being studied and the insurance company

▪ Thermography IS an FDA approved technology

A 15 minute test can save your life! Ask us about thermography today!

Positive comparative study showing changes over one year:

Baseline	3 Months	6 Months	9 Months	12 Months

This patient was also age 37 when her first baseline thermogram showed a slight hyperthermic asymmetry in the upper right breast. The follow-up study showed the pattern had become more well defined and although clinical correlation did not find anything remarkable, it was decided to repeat the exam again in a further 3 months, when again significant changes were seen. Mammography was performed at this stage with the thermographic guidance of the locally suspicious area at 1 O'clock to the right nipple. The mammographic findings were inconclusive and the patient was referred for a repeat mammogram in 12 months. Thermographic monitoring was continued and at the fifth comparative study at 12 months significant changes were still evident and the hyperthermic asymmetry (temperature differentials) had increased. Immediate further investigation was strongly recommended despite a scheduled mammogram in 6 months, and at the patients insistence a repeat mammogram was performed which clearly showed a small calcification (1 mm) at 1 O'clock. Within one week a lumpectomy had been performed with good margins and the pathology confirmed as a malignant carcinoma (DCIS). This patient has now had stable thermograms for the last 2 years and is expected to remain healthy.

Inflammatory Breast Disease:

The results of this routine study led to the diagnosis of inflammatory carcinoma in the right breast There were no clinical indications at this stage. (Thermography can show significant indicators several months before any of the clinical signs of inflammatory breast disease, skin discoloration, swelling and pain). Inflammatory breast disease cannot be detected by mammography and is most commonly seen in younger women; the prognosis is always poor. Early detection provides the best hope of survival.

DCIS with accompanying angiogenesis:

This 37 year old patient presented for routine thermographic breast screening. She was not in a high risk category and had no family history. No breast exams had been performed previously. The vascular asymmetry in the upper left breast and the local hypothermia at 11 O'clock was particularly suspicious and subsequent clinical investigation indicated a palpable mass at the position indicated. A biopsy was performed and a DCIS of 2 cm was diagnosed.