The Full Scoop Initiative: Advancing Precision Breast Cancer Screening
What Drives Us?
One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, and the stage at diagnosis is one of the most important factors affecting prognosis. When breast cancer is detected at an early stage, the five-year survival rate is as high as 99%. But for women diagnosed at later stages, survival statistics drop drastically, to as low as 32%.
Many women remain unaware of their breast cancer risk or that early-detection screening options extend beyond mammograms — leading to missed or ineffective screenings and delayed diagnosis. Mammograms are vital, but they aren’t enough for every woman. Supplemental screenings like ultrasound and MRI can significantly improve detection, yet many women remain unaware of these options or face barriers to accessing them due to limited risk awareness, outdated guidelines, insurance barriers, health deserts, or financial constraints.
Most women believe family history is the biggest risk factor for breast cancer, but only 5% to 10% of cases are caused by inherited gene mutations. Other critical risks—breast density, metabolic factors, demographics, environmental exposures, lifestyle factors, BMI, and racial disparities—are often overlooked in risk assessment.
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Breast density is a stronger risk factor for breast cancer than most others. Nearly half of women aged 40 and older who undergo mammograms have dense breasts, and those with very dense breasts are 4 to 5 times more likely to develop breast cancer. Yet, standard mammograms miss almost 60% of cancers in dense breast tissue.
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Black women, for example, face a significantly higher risk of developing triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), the most aggressive form of the disease. They are diagnosed at younger ages, at later stages, and experience a 38% higher mortality rate compared to white women. These disparities highlight the need for more frequent and tailored screening protocols to ensure early detection and improved outcomes.
Breast cancer screening isn’t one-size-fits-all. When risk factors are ignored, lives are lost. We're working to change that by empowering women with the risk assessment and screening knowledge they need to take action as shared decision makers with their provider.
Our Bold Vision
We envision a future where every woman has access to precision, risk-based breast cancer screening—no exceptions. Outdated, one-size-fits-all guidelines and systemic barriers should never determine who gets life-saving early detection.
Knowledge is power. Every woman deserves to understand her unique risk and be an informed and active partner in decisions about her breast health. We empower women with the knowledge, tools, and innovative solutions they need to take charge of their lifelong health and prevent late-stage breast cancer diagnoses —because preventing a health crisis before it starts changes everything.
Pioneering Prevention
We collaboratively advance risk-based screening knowledge and support effective and accessible screening modalities—ensuring every woman receives the screening she needs for early detection and lifesaving outcomes.
We bring together stakeholders from government, academia, healthcare, and the community to create a collaborative health science knowledge system. By co-creating with the community, we ensure that breast cancer risk assessment screening strategies are inclusive, accessible, and effective for all women. Through this collaboration, we drive systemic change in how breast cancer screening knowledge, research, and practice are developed, shared, and implemented.
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Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Awareness: We raise awareness about diverse breast cancer risk factors and advocate for personalized screening strategies to improve early detection, especially for high-risk women.
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Breast Cancer Screening Tools Awareness: We empower women to seek and advocate for supplemental screening options, such as ultrasound and MRI, when needed, in partnership with their healthcare providers.
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Advancing Risk Assessment Tools: We support the development of comprehensive, individualized risk assessment tools that improve personalized screening approaches.
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Innovation in Detection Tools: We promote the innovation of breast cancer detection technologies to ensure more accurate and early diagnoses.
The Road Ahead
The first step in our journey is conducting a landscape analysis to assess existing challenges and opportunities in breast cancer risk assessment and supplemental screening. This critical analysis will guide the development of innovative solutions and help us build collaborative networks with researchers, healthcare providers, and advocates.
Together, we will work to create sustainable, impactful change in women’s health, ensuring every woman has access to the tools, knowledge, and support she needs to protect her health.