{"id":14909,"date":"2026-03-08T22:16:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T03:16:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/?p=14909"},"modified":"2026-03-08T22:20:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T03:20:32","slug":"meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n
\n \"Dr. \n <\/div>\n \n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n
\n

\n \n Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters <\/span>\n\n \n \n March 8, 2025 <\/span>\n <\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
\n
\n

Dr. Matt Covington<\/a>, a breast and nuclear radiologist, believes in today\u2019s world, with today\u2019s technology, no one should die from breast cancer. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf we find breast cancer early enough, it\u2019s essentially curable,\u201d he said, explaining that early detection followed by appropriate treatment such as surgery, radiation, and endocrine therapy saves lives.<\/p>\n

So why aren\u2019t all cases of breast cancer found early? Covington points to dense breast tissue, lack of proper screening, and unused risk assessments. Now, he\u2019s working to change things.<\/p>\n

Dense Breast Tissue<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt honestly breaks my heart whenever I see a case of a cancer that has become advanced and spread simply because we couldn’t see it because it was hiding in dense breast tissue on a mammogram,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He advises women with dense breasts to still get a mammogram as there are certain cancers that are only picked up with that type of screening. However, a mammogram alone is not enough for this population.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you do have dense breast tissue, you need to go on with additional imaging in many cases with things like breast MRI or other technologies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Lack of Proper Screening<\/strong><\/p>\n

During a career that has spanned academics, medical research, and patient care, Covington has found himself frustrated by resistance within the medical community to provide additional screening to women with dense breast tissue. But the situation is improving.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough advocacy and, I would say directly attributable to the work of My Density Matters as well as others, I’m now seeing breast imagers across the country advocating and directly offering additional screening to women with dense breast tissue, making sure that they’re aware of their breast density,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

And the results are impressive.<\/p>\n

\u201cData has shown very well that if a woman has dense breast tissue and they undergo, for example, screening mammography every year and additional supplemental screening with something like a contrast enhanced breast MRI, we essentially find all breast cancer cases early,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Risk Assessments <\/strong><\/p>\n

While most women are told to start mammography screening at age 40, Covington recommends women undergo a risk assessment at a younger age, which could increase early detection.<\/p>\n

\u201cAsking for risk assessment, finding online risk assessment tools, making sure that your primary care provider is giving appropriate risk assessment before you’re age 40, can save your life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In his day-to-day job at Summit Physician Specialists in Ogden, Utah, near Salt Lake City, he counsels patients on necessary screening for breast cancer, and in cases where breast cancer is detected, he helps people understand their diagnosis and determine treatment that likely leads to an excellent outcome.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople say it must be really hard, and at times it is,\u201d he said, \u201cbut it’s also deeply satisfying to do the job well, in a compassionate manner, and in a way that really helps men and women in difficult circumstances in their lives especially when we’re talking about a new diagnosis of breast cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

My Density Matters is here to answer your questions and make sure you are informed and empowered to take control of your breast cancer screening. <\/em>Check Your Chart<\/em><\/a>\u2122 and learn more about reading your mammogram report and <\/em>sign up for the My Density Matters newsletter<\/em><\/a> to stay up-to-date about the latest recommendations.<\/em><\/p>\n

Meet other members of the My Density Matters Medical Advisory Board<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Matt Covington, a breast and nuclear radiologist, believes in today\u2019s world, with today\u2019s technology, no one should die from breast cancer.  \u201cIf we find breast cancer early enough, it\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":14912,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breast-cancer","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"yoast_head":"\nMeet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"es_MX\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dr. Matt Covington, a breast and nuclear radiologist, believes in today\u2019s world, with today\u2019s technology, no one should die from breast cancer.  \u201cIf we find breast cancer early enough, it\u2019s […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"My Density Matters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/MyDensityMatters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"550\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"598\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leslie Ferris Yerger\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@mydensitymatter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@mydensitymatter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Escrito por\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leslie Ferris Yerger\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Tiempo de lectura\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutos\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Leslie Ferris Yerger\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/479bc5fc649f8e8b570ac678e98dbea5\"},\"headline\":\"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":585,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Breast Cancer\"],\"inLanguage\":\"es\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/\",\"name\":\"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"es\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"es\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\",\"width\":550,\"height\":598,\"caption\":\"Dr. Matt Covington\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"My Density Matters\",\"description\":\"Breast Density & Breast Cancer Risk\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"MDM\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"es\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"My Density Matters\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"es\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/04\\\/logo_mydensitymatters.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/04\\\/logo_mydensitymatters.jpg\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":1500,\"caption\":\"My Density Matters\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/facebook.com\\\/MyDensityMatters\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/mydensitymatter\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/mydensitymatters\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/linkedin.com\\\/groups\\\/13907198\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/479bc5fc649f8e8b570ac678e98dbea5\",\"name\":\"Leslie Ferris Yerger\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"es\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Leslie Ferris Yerger\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mydensitymatters.org\\\/es\\\/author\\\/lfy2020\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/","og_locale":"es_MX","og_type":"article","og_title":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters","og_description":"Dr. Matt Covington, a breast and nuclear radiologist, believes in today\u2019s world, with today\u2019s technology, no one should die from breast cancer.  \u201cIf we find breast cancer early enough, it\u2019s […]","og_url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/","og_site_name":"My Density Matters","article_publisher":"https:\/\/facebook.com\/MyDensityMatters","article_published_time":"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00","og_image":[{"width":550,"height":598,"url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Leslie Ferris Yerger","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@mydensitymatter","twitter_site":"@mydensitymatter","twitter_misc":{"Escrito por":"Leslie Ferris Yerger","Tiempo de lectura":"6 minutos"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/"},"author":{"name":"Leslie Ferris Yerger","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#\/schema\/person\/479bc5fc649f8e8b570ac678e98dbea5"},"headline":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters","datePublished":"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/"},"wordCount":585,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg","articleSection":["Breast Cancer"],"inLanguage":"es"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/","url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/","name":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters - My Density Matters","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-09T03:16:18+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-09T03:20:32+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"es","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"es","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg","width":550,"height":598,"caption":"Dr. Matt Covington"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/meet-dr-matt-covington-medical-advisor-to-my-density-matters\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/","name":"Mi densidad importa","description":"Breast Density & Breast Cancer Risk","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#organization"},"alternateName":"MDM","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"es"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#organization","name":"Mi densidad importa","url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"es","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/logo_mydensitymatters.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/logo_mydensitymatters.jpg","width":1500,"height":1500,"caption":"My Density Matters"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/facebook.com\/MyDensityMatters","https:\/\/x.com\/mydensitymatter","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mydensitymatters\/","https:\/\/linkedin.com\/groups\/13907198"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/#\/schema\/person\/479bc5fc649f8e8b570ac678e98dbea5","name":"Leslie Ferris Yerger","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"es","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aa11aabaa7543109200e5940be696a23258c78e963e9670814da03eae2183a19?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Leslie Ferris Yerger"},"url":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/author\/lfy2020\/"}]}},"builder_content":"<img src=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg\" title=\"photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2\" alt=\"Dr. Matt Covington\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2.jpg 550w, https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2-276x300.jpg 276w, https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/photo_Dr_Matt_Covington2-11x12.jpg 11w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/>\n<h2>Meet Dr. Matt Covington, Medical Advisor to My Density Matters<br\/>March 8, 2025<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/matt-covington-md-90b356a2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr. Matt Covington<\/a>, a breast and nuclear radiologist, believes in today\u2019s world, with today\u2019s technology, no one should die from breast cancer. <\/p> <p>\u201cIf we find breast cancer early enough, it\u2019s essentially curable,\u201d he said, explaining that early detection followed by appropriate treatment such as surgery, radiation, and endocrine therapy saves lives.<\/p> <p>So why aren\u2019t all cases of breast cancer found early? Covington points to dense breast tissue, lack of proper screening, and unused risk assessments. Now, he\u2019s working to change things.<\/p> <p><strong>Dense Breast Tissue<\/strong><\/p> <p>\u201cIt honestly breaks my heart whenever I see a case of a cancer that has become advanced and spread simply because we couldn't see it because it was hiding in dense breast tissue on a mammogram,\u201d he said.<\/p> <p>He advises women with dense breasts to still get a mammogram as there are certain cancers that are only picked up with that type of screening. However, a mammogram alone is not enough for this population.<\/p> <p>\u201cIf you do have dense breast tissue, you need to go on with additional imaging in many cases with things like breast MRI or other technologies,\u201d he said.<\/p> <p><strong>Lack of Proper Screening<\/strong><\/p> <p>During a career that has spanned academics, medical research, and patient care, Covington has found himself frustrated by resistance within the medical community to provide additional screening to women with dense breast tissue. But the situation is improving.<\/p> <p>\u201cThrough advocacy and, I would say directly attributable to the work of My Density Matters as well as others, I'm now seeing breast imagers across the country advocating and directly offering additional screening to women with dense breast tissue, making sure that they're aware of their breast density,\u201d he said.<\/p> <p>And the results are impressive.<\/p> <p>\u201cData has shown very well that if a woman has dense breast tissue and they undergo, for example, screening mammography every year and additional supplemental screening with something like a contrast enhanced breast MRI, we essentially find all breast cancer cases early,\u201d he said.<\/p> <p><strong>Risk Assessments <\/strong><\/p> <p>While most women are told to start mammography screening at age 40, Covington recommends women undergo a risk assessment at a younger age, which could increase early detection.<\/p> <p>\u201cAsking for risk assessment, finding online risk assessment tools, making sure that your primary care provider is giving appropriate risk assessment before you're age 40, can save your life,\u201d he said.<\/p> <p>In his day-to-day job at Summit Physician Specialists in Ogden, Utah, near Salt Lake City, he counsels patients on necessary screening for breast cancer, and in cases where breast cancer is detected, he helps people understand their diagnosis and determine treatment that likely leads to an excellent outcome.<\/p> <p>\u201cPeople say it must be really hard, and at times it is,\u201d he said, \u201cbut it's also deeply satisfying to do the job well, in a compassionate manner, and in a way that really helps men and women in difficult circumstances in their lives especially when we're talking about a new diagnosis of breast cancer.\u201d<\/p> <p><em>My Density Matters is here to answer your questions and make sure you are informed and empowered to take control of your breast cancer screening. <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/programs\/check-your-chart\/\"><em>Check Your Chart<\/em><\/a><em>\u2122 and learn more about reading your mammogram report and <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.us6.list-manage.com\/subscribe?u=5538d695d2c28d3753de11025&id=440625e1ce\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>sign up for the My Density Matters newsletter<\/em><\/a><em> to stay up-to-date about the latest recommendations.<\/em><\/p> <p>Meet other members of the <a href=\"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/medical-advisors\/\"><i>My Density Matters Medical Advisory Board<\/i><\/a><i>.<\/i><\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14909"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14909\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14920,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14909\/revisions\/14920"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mydensitymatters.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}