mammogram

noun

mam·​mo·​gram ˈma-mə-ˌgram 

: a photograph of the breasts made by X-rays

also : the procedure for producing a mammogram

Examples of mammogram in a Sentence

She went to the hospital for her yearly mammogram.

Recent Examples on the Web

Medicare covers about two dozen preventive services at no out-of-pocket cost, including mammograms annually starting at age 40, bone density scans every 24 months for high-risk patients, and cardiovascular disease screenings every 5 years. —Allison Palmer march 3, Miami Herald, 3 Mar. 2026

At the sessions, the team walked through the basics of who should get a mammogram (women age 40 or older, those with a family history of breast cancer) and the procedure itself. —Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2026

Artificial intelligence can detect breast cancer on screening mammograms more accurately than individual expert radiologists in some study settings. —Morish Shah, STAT, 20 Feb. 2026

Women with dense breast tissue often need an MRI or ultrasound, as mammograms can be insufficient for detection. —Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 19 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin mamma "breast" + -o- + -gram — more at mamma entry 1

Note: The terms mammogram and mammography were introduced by the American physician and surgeon Nymphus Frederick Hicken (1900-98) in "Mammography: roentgenologic diagnosis of breast tumors by means of contrast media," Surgery, Gynecology and Obstetrics, vol. 64 (1937), pp. 593-603.

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mammogram

• abraham
• anagram
• cablegram
• cofferdam
• dendrogram
• diagram
• diaphragm
• epigram
• hexagram
• histogram
• hologram
• instagram

Medical Definition

mammogram

noun

mam·​mo·​gram ˈmam-ə-ˌgram 

1

: a photograph of the breasts made by X-rays

2

: the procedure for producing a mammogram