Routine mammograms may also help spot heart disease, according to a new study.

"Breast tissue, like every other part of our body, has arteries, blood vessels that run through it," says Dr. Stacey Rosen, cardiologist and vice president of women's health at Northwell Health. "So in the mammogram, the digital mammogram, there is the opportunity to look for calcium in the arteries in the breast. And for women that had that, they correlated with finding calcium in the arteries of the heart on a second test they did."



Doctors admit there needs to be more studies on these findings. But they say it's positive news considering heart disease is the No. 1 killer in women.

"This may be a wonderful new opportunity for early prevention," says Dr. Rosen.