Although all vaccines can result in temporary lymphadenopathy, it is recommended that screening mammography not be delayed after COVID-19 vaccination or booster. Our goal is to not delay neither patient access to COVID-19 vaccine nor early detection of breast cancer using screening mammography, while keeping in mind patient inconvenience and additional costs and resources caused by follow up imaging triggered by unilateral reactive adenopathy seen on a mammogram.
Munson Healthcare’s recommendations, in keeping with Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) recommendations, are:
- Do not delay any diagnostic imaging regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status, particularly for a palpable area regardless of proximity to dose.
- When possible, schedule screening mammography before the 1st dose or 4-6 weeks after any dose of COVID-19 vaccine. However, do not delay screening mammogram if this will push the patient beyond 14 months since the last screening mammogram.
Please let your patients know that we are asking questions about COVID-19 vaccination when scheduling breast imaging per the SBI recommendation, including date of administration and arm in which it was administered to assist the reading radiologist in appropriate clinical decision making. The patient may be called back for additional imaging if unilateral adenopathy is present on the mammogram. However, in the correct clinical setting, recommendation will likely be short-term follow-up ultrasound to assess resolution of reactive adenopathy rather than pushing straight to a biopsy.
If patients call with questions and don’t want to delay their mammogram screening, please assure them that the radiologists will be reading screens with the knowledge that COVID-19 vaccines can cause adenopathy.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact one of our Smith Family Breast Health Center nurses or radiologists at 800-968-9292.