Several studies link higher breast density with a increased risk of breast cancer, but few public education or policy efforts focus on that aspect of breast cancer risk, the Los Angeles Times reports. Women with extremely dense breasts can have a four-to six-times-higher breast cancer risk than women whose breasts are not dense, research shows. By comparison, family history of breast cancer typically doubles a woman's risk for the disease, the Times reports.

According to the Times, women's breast density is measured and recorded when they receive mammograms because denser breasts can make the screenings more difficult to interpret. Some health professionals contend that giving women information about their breast density would add to anxiety without providing a clinical benefit, since density is influenced by factors such as heredity, age and ethnicity that cannot be controlled. Furthermore, the measurements used in mammography are "rather imprecise and subjective," the Times reports.

Foto Gabija Lunavičiūtė

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