Home About Advisory Team

Thought Leader Advisory Team

Thought leaders are the informed opinion leaders and the go-to people in their field of expertise. They are trusted sources who move and inspire people with innovative ideas that turn into reality.

The Board of Directors of Are You Dense Inc. is grateful to the diverse group of thoughtful leaders providing insights and guidance to our Mission, representing oncology, health and wellness, law, medicine, pharmacology, administration, research, surgery, breast imaging, epidemiology and patient advocacy.

Robert L. Bard, MD, PC, DABR, FASLMS - Breast Cancer Diagnostic Imaging Specialist/ NYCRA Cancer Advocacy & Research program - New York City.

Kristie Bobolis, MD, Medical Oncology and Hematology, Sutter Roseville Medical Center, Roseville, CA

Carolyn J Cagnassola, JD, PharmD, Director-Quality, BioMetrics/Statistics-Global Medical Quality- Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN

Julie S. Gershon, MD, Breast Radiologist and Owner of J. Gershon Breast Imaging, Avon, CT.

Regina Hampton, MD, FACS, Medical Director and Co-Founder Breast Care for Washington, Washington, DC

Beth A. Jones, PhD, MPH, Assistant Director Diversity and Health Equity, Yale Cancer Center, Cancer Screening Program Director, Smilow Cancer Hospital, New Haven CT

Jane L. Kakkis, MD, MPH, Breast Surgeon, Director Breast Center Orange Coast Memorial Hospital, Fountain Valley, CA

David L. Katz, MD, MPH, FACPM, FACP, FACLM, Director, Yale University Prevention Research Center, Griffin Hospital, Fellow, Morse College,Yale University. President, American College of Lifestyle Medicine, Founder, True Health Initiative, Hamden, CT

Despina Kontos, PhD, Assistant Professor, Computational Breast Imaging Group (CBIG), Center for Biomedical Image Computing and Analytics (CBICA), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Richard Reitherman, PhD, MD, Medical Director of Breast Imaging at the Memorial Care Breast Center, Orange Coast Memorial Hospital, Fountain Valley, CA

Bonnie Rush, RT(R)(M)(QM), President, Breast Imaging Specialists, Education, Practice Management, Advocacy, San Diego, CA

Molly M. Shipman, DO, Obstetrician/Gynecologist. The Center for Women's Health in Connecticut, Waterbury, CT

David A. Strahle, MD, Chairman and President of Regional Medical Imaging, Flint, MI

Carlos E. Vasquez, FACHE, Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Franciscan Health Rensselaer, Rensselaer, IN

Learn More

What is Dense Breast Tissue?

How Do I Know if I Have Dense Breast Tissue?

What Do I Do if I Have Dense Breast Tissue?

Are You Dense? Fact #1:
Breast density is one of the strongest predictors of the failure of mammography screening to detect cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #2:
Two-thirds of pre-menopausal women and 40% of post-menopausal women have dense breast tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #3:
Adding more sensitive tests to mammography significantly increase detection of invasive cancers that are small and node negative.
Are You Dense? Fact #4:
American College of Radiology describes women with "Dense Breast Tissue" as having a higher than average risk of Breast Cancer.
Are You Dense? Fact #5:
While a mammogram detects 98% of cancers in women with fatty breasts, it finds only 48% in women with dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #6:
A woman at average risk and a woman at high risk have an EQUAL chance of having their cancer masked by mammogram.
Are You Dense? Fact #7:
Women with dense breasts who had breast cancer have a four times higher risk of recurrence than women with less-dense breasts.
Are You Dense? Fact #8:
A substantial proportion of Breast Cancer can be attributed to high breast density alone.
Are You Dense? Fact #9:
Cancer turns up five times more often in women with extremely dense breasts than those with the most fatty tissue.
Are You Dense? Fact #10
There are too many women who are unaware of their breast density, believe their “Happy Gram” when it reports no significant findings and are at risk of receiving a later stage cancer diagnosis.