The mammographic unit is shown on the right. The breast is compressed between a plastic plate and the X-ray detector. This compression improves the visibility of normal and abnormal structures within the breast, decreases x-ray dose and reduces patient motion during the exposure.
The gantry can rotate 360 degrees, depending on the view desired. In the position shown, it will take a cranio-caudal "CC" view.
Two standard views are obtained of each breast in a screening mammogram, the cranio-caudal "CC" view and the medio-lateral oblique view "MLO" view.
