Breast density is a significant breast cancer risk factor measured from mammograms. Disclosed is a methodology for converting continuous measurements of breast density and calibrated mammograms into a four-state ordinal variable approximating the BI-RADS ratings. In particular, the present disclosure is directed to a calibration system for a specific full field digital mammography (FFDM) technology. The calibration adjusts for the x-ray acquisition technique differences across mammograms resulting in standardized images. The approach produced various calibrated and validated measures of breast density, one of which assesses variation in the mammogram referred to as Vc (i.e. variation measured from calibrated mammograms). The variation in raw mammograms [i.e. Vr] is a valid breast density risk factor in both FFDM in digitized film mammograms.
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