MURRAY – New mammography guidelines for women receiving the COVID-19 vaccine were approved by Intermountain Healthcare and nationwide hospitals on Tuesday.
Doctors said swelling from the vaccine can make accurate reading of mammograms difficult.
According to the guidelines, women who have recently had or plan to have the COVID-19 vaccine would want to reschedule an upcoming mammogram.
Swelling in the lymph nodes can lead to a poor reading.
“What many people don’t realize is that when we do a mammogram, we can see those lymph nodes,” says Dr. Brett Parkinson, Medical Director of Intermountain Healthcare’s Breast Care Center.
The medical center now recommends that women over 40 get their annual mammogram before getting the vaccine, or that cancer screening postpones for at least four weeks after their last dose.
Here’s why: When people get the COVID-19 vaccine, their arm swells. “Those who got the vaccination can confirm that,” Parkinson’s said.
That swelling also shows up in the lymph nodes in the armpit area, usually on the same side where the injection was given, which can be seen on a mammogram. Usually they don’t see enlarged lymph nodes unless it’s inflammation or cancer. Recent national research found lymph node swelling in 11% of vaccine recipients after the first dose and 16% after the second dose.
“So if you get a mammogram right after a COVID vaccination, you could have enlarged lymph nodes,” Parkinson said.
He said they rarely see enlarged lymph nodes unless breast cancer has traveled to the lymph nodes or if it is lymphoma or leukemia.
So if you have a mammogram right after a COVID vaccine, you could have enlarged lymph nodes … We don’t want patients to get these false positives when they get this kind of alarm.
–Dr. Brett Parkinson, Medical Director of Intermountain Healthcare’s Breast Care Center
“We don’t want patients to get these false positives to get this kind of alarm,” Parkinson’s said. “So we’ve come up with a set of guidelines for patients to follow.”
The new guidelines are also recommended by the Society of Breast Imaging after swollen lymph nodes have been found in mammograms across the country.
If the swelling in the lymph nodes doesn’t go away after four weeks, Parkinson’s said you should get it checked out by a doctor.
“This is a known side effect,” he said. Don’t panic if it happens. But if it doesn’t resolve, come in and be seen and we’ll look specifically at that lymph node. ‘
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