Mammograms may reveal more than breast cancer risk — they can also hint at heart health

(STATE COLLEGE, PENN.) If you are a woman older than 40, you have likely been told to get a mammogram as part of routine breast cancer screening. But there is another reason to pay attention.

A mammogram may show no evidence of breast cancer and still uncover something worth discussing with a doctor: calcium deposits in the medium-sized arteries that supply blood to the breast. Those deposits can provide clues about a woman’s future heart health.