Pink Image Breast Thermography – Located in San Diego and Orange County – Southern California, Solana Beach, Irvine
Schedule an Appointment – Specializing in High Resolution Breast Thermography, Located in San Diego, Southern California, Orange County, Solana Beach, Irvine
About Pink Image Breast Thermography – Located in San Diego and Orange County – Southern California, Solana Beach, Irvine


Interested in becoming WABT certified?
Please contact us at: certification@womensacademyofbreastthermography.com or call us at (619) 723-8769.

Skip below to Minimum Requirements for Breast Thermography

"Thermography was shown as the highest risk factor and marker. It was found to be a ten times higher risk marker than family history."
William Hobbins, M.D. : Thermography - Highest Risk Marker 1977

WABT's Breast Thermography Certifications - William Hobbins M.D. Certified

Physicians Seminars for practicioners wanting to implement breast thermography into their practice.

WABT's Certification Programs

1.William Hobbins M.D. Certified Breast Thermography Technician
Accredited by WABT ~ WABT-BTT

Knowledge of proper patient preparation
Demonstration of proper camera operation and image capture positions
Demonstration of proper room requirements
Knowledge of thermographic breast health as it applies to the patient
Knowledge and practice of breast thermography's minimum requirements (stated below)
Accomplishment of 25 case studies


2.William Hobbins M.D. Certified Thermographic Breast Health Physician or Practitioner
Accredited by WABT ~ WABT-BTP

Knowledge of thermographic breast health as it applies to the patient
Knowledge of thermal effects of hormone therapies
Knowledge of thermal effects of breast cancers
Knowledge of breast health and breast cancer treatment plans
Knowledge of breast anatomy and physiology
Knowledge of clinical breast exam correlated with thermography report
Knowledge and practice of breast thermography's minimum requirements (stated below)
Knowledge of Diaphanoscopy
Accomplishment of 100 treatment plans based on breast thermography reports


3.William Hobbins M.D. Certified Breast Thermography Interpreter
Accredited by WABT ~ WABT-BTI

Knowledge of thermographic breast health as it applies to the patient
Knowledge of thermal effects of hormone therapies
Knowledge of thermal effects of breast cancers
Knowledge of breast health and breast cancer treatment plans
Knowledge of breast anatomy and physiology
Knowledge of clinical breast exam correlated with thermography report
Knowledge and practice of breast thermography's minimum requirements (stated below)
Knowledge of Diaphanoscopy
Interpretation knowledge meeting minimum requirements
Accomplishment of 100 treament plans based on breast thermography reports
Accomplishment of 750 breast thermography reports


The essential purpose of breast thermography is early detection. Many people believe it is to screen for breast cancer, but more imperative is thermography's ability to detect "at risk" women for early lifestyle changes to avoid risk of cancer. Breast thermograms analyze blood flow or vascular pattern in the breasts. Breast thermography can monitor women's breast health risk by monitoring new blood vessels growth or neoangiogenesis in the breasts. Breast thermography can alert a woman who is thermographically at risk due to increased vascularity or neoangiogenesis to make lifestyle changes to correct the risk before it escalates.

It was Dr. Hobbins purpose with breast thermography to alert high-risk women with an abnormal thermogram to proceed to mammography. This may eliminate unnecessary exposure to radiation annually for "healthy" women.

As a patient researching qualified breast thermography centers, be sure to follow standards and protocols. These standards and protocols are the result of years of thermographic research and were the same utilized to collect all of the efficacy data on breast thermography. WABT was created to promote the minimum standards and protocols required for certified breast thermography.

The key to establishing and promoting the clinical value of breast thermography in the United States and abroad is acceptance by Medical Doctors and other referring practitioners. Acceptance will be based largely on each clinic's adherence to universal standards and guidelines for patient preparation, image acquisition and interpretation, and report generation. If the true value of breast thermography is to be embraced by the current medical establishment, all clinics offering breast thermography are to acquire thorough training and certification.

Quick Cancer Cells Lesson

Every time a cell divides there is a possibility of mutation. This is important because substances, such as toxins and free radicals, can mutate the cell by interfering with the DNA replication. This can be very dangerous because, as we will see, cell division will replicate these mutations and eventually create a cancer. Through mitosis (cell division), every 90 days a cell doubles in your body, this includes cancer cells.

  • 90 days = 2 cells
  • 1 year = 16 cells
  • 2 years = 256 cells
  • 3 years = 4,096 cells (Potential cancer patterns detectable by breast thermography)
  • 4 years = 65,536 cells
  • 5 years = 1,048,576 cells (Cancer remains undetectable by a mammogram)
  • 6 years = 16,777,216 cells
  • 7 years = 268,453,456 cells
  • 8 years = 4,294,967,296 cells

  • It is not until between 6-8 years (depending on age and density of breasts) when a mammogram can detect cancer as the mass is large enough to be detectable, usually the size of a small pea. Unfortunately, after this many years it has become much more difficult to treat, especially with alternative medicine. It is these first couple of years when a thermogram can see an abnormality, not necessarily a cancer, and it is at this time when the body has the best chance to be treated by changing habits and lifestyle.

    Below are the minimum standard requirements created by Dr Hobbins' based on the results of breast thermography studies. (Please see "Research" page for list of studies). William Hobbins MD imaged over 100,000 women in the "Mass Breast Cancer Screening with Thermography," studies from 1971-1975.

    "Thermography screening of the breast does not find breast cancer. Thermography screening does identify a female population which is at higher risk than the population at large. Thermography screening is biologically safe. Thermography screening increases the opportunity to intensify educational emphasis."
    William Hobbins, M.D.
    Mass Breast Cancer Screening with Thermography, 25,000 Cases, 1975


    Minimum Standard Requirement for Certified Breast Thermography:

    1. Black hot or Reverse Gray scale analysis
    2. Interpretation
    3. Nipplar delta T
    4. TH score between 1 and 5
    5. Cold stress test
    6. Personal breast cancer health risk (suggested, not required)
    7. Camera optical line measurement
    8. Monitoring Breast Health, Hormones (not FDA approved), & Cancer
    9. Major and minor signs


    1. Black Hot or Reverse Grey Imaging
    Certified breast thermography interpreters read images in both reverse gray scale and color, with reverse gray being more significant. What uncertified clinics are missing is a vital key to determining vascular patterns in the breast, as it is only grey scale and reverse grey scale which enables the reader to see such patterns as well as neoangiogenesis. Many vascular patterns can be observed even before there is a thermal or heat pattern. Because uncertified clinics read in color only, they are neglecting essential early screening markers.

    Cancers tend to form certain patterns and were categorized and classified by several studies. Dr Hobbins and a group of medical doctors included these patterns in the minimum standards. These patterns are taught to certified breast thermography interpreters so they are able to give women a complete and detailed report. These signs can determine the TH score and/or risk of each breast.


    2. Interpretation
    The reason for the sub-par thermography clinics in the United States is that the interpreters are poor. The M.D.'s who created breast thermography spent YEARS painstakingly studying and researching. Dr. Hobbins toured the globe 10 times educating physicians. So most qualified physicians were trained by him as there was no other doctor who taught a considerable number of interpreters. His class was a weekend course followed by reading 100 reviewed reports. Regretfully, that is all it took to become a qualified interpreter. The enormous error of this teaching technique is quite apparent now with the high turnout of mediocre interpreters. These interpreters were not thoroughly trained with many of them changing breast thermography requirements with no studies or statistical analysis performed. A radiologist does not just take a weekend course to read mammograms and there should be integrity within the screening field of breast thermography as well. A qualified interpreter should have 750 reports under his/her mentor to be knowledgeable in vascular structures and/or neoangiogenesis.


    3. Nipplar Delta T
    The most important area to analyze in thermography is the temperature difference between the nipples (a.k.a. nipplar delta T). 83% of cancers will have a hot nipple on the diagnosed breast.


    4. TH Score = Thermogaphy score
    It is not appropriate to scrore a report just "normal" or "abnormal". If a report has "normal" or "abnormal" without a score this is not a proper report and is therefore not conducted by a certified clinic.
    The scoring system is based on a THermographic score of 1-5.

    TH-1 = Normal or Non-Vascular
    A healthy breast is non-vascular, which indicates a lack of neoangiogenesis (new blood vessels) and a negative cancer screen.

    TH-2 = Vascular Uniform
    As thermograms compare one breast to the other, a vascular uniform score indicates that both sides exhibit vascularity or more severe, hyper-vascularity. Unfortunately, most of the women imaged now days will fall into this score of TH-2 whereas 20 years ago most women would be a TH-1.

    TH-3 = Equivocal
    This clinical finding is limited to one breast and is given a score of equivocal, which means doubtful. In this case the woman must proceed to other imaging modalities, such as ultrasound, mammogram or MRI with contrast, to determine what the issue may be. A portion of women (about 40%) with a score of TH-3 who return for imaging several months later are downgraded to a TH-2, though. This downgrade is possible if the suspicious area has stabilized or decreased in vascularity or neoangiogenesis.

    TH-4 = Abnormal
    TH-5 = Severely Abnormal

    In these cases findings are considered significant and requires further investigation such as ultrasound, mammogram or MRI with contrast.

    Many clinics demand a 3 month repeat to determine a baseline thermogram. As each woman has an individual thermal pattern, each case is determined independently. A woman who has a score of TH 1 or is non-vascular does not require an early recall. Some concerning TH 2 scores may require an early recall and some may not, again it is case by case basis. All TH 3, TH 4 and TH5 scores require an early recall.

    Avoid TH score calculation systems. The TH score is based on a point system from 1-200. One of Dr Hobbins' students who became an interpreter and trains others to interpret devised an independent scoring system. In additions some camera companies are installing software scoring systems.

    In the 70's a large software company originally had a similar idea with the intent to have a computer diagnose thermography. They went through the proper processes of first testing or studying this hypothesis. They initiated a million dollar study, carried out by a radiologist at the University of Oklahoma, with the purpose of creating a statistical scoring system for breast thermography. Eventually, this scoring system revealed an average error rate of 28% in the breast thermography reports. There is no medical imaging modality which utilizes a computer scoring system to conduct interpretations. (For example an MRI of the spine is read by a qualified MD known as a radiologist, not a computer).

    Breast thermography monitors neoangioigenesis. It is vital that the interpreter is accomplished in reading vascular structures in black hot images and has knowledge of neoangiogenesis. "Point and click" software is not valid interpretation.


    5. Cold Stress Challenge
    When a patient is cooled the blood vessels will constrict and a potential abnormality will not. The Infrared camera detects heat that is radiating from the unusual blood vessels. Most certified clinics use an air-conditioned room kept below 68 degrees F. However, a cold stress challenge is always recommended. It is mandatory with a TH score of 3, 4, or 5 to have a cold stress challenge. A cold stress test includes an ice pack applied to the forehead or back. Some clinics are still using cold water, but in using this technique the foot MUST become numb or painful in order to be effective. Cool water is ineffective. Do not use ice water applied to the hands as this would required the arms to be down. The arms must be up and hands on the head when cooling down for 10-15 minutes. This raises the breasts up so it decreases any reflective heat off the abdomen and cools the lymph in the axilla (under arm). If hands are immersed in water the breasts and axilla are not effectively cooled.


    6. Health Risk- Not a Requirement
    A personal breast cancer health risk is tallied for each individual and suggested to be included in the report. The health risk index is a nationally accepted risk for breast cancer. It was determined by a culmination of studies from The American Cancer Society, The National Cancer Institute, and The American Radiology Society. These 3 organizations followed 250,000 women for 5 years. Increased risk of breast cancer is determined by: age of individual, age at time of first child (parity), family history, weight, race, exposure to estrogen by birth control pills and synthetic hormone replacement therapies.


    7. Camera
    An infrared camera with an optical line resolution of 480 should be the minimum accepted resolution. The higher the optical line resolution the more detailed the breast image and therefore the greater possibility of earlier detection.

    For more information, please refer to Technology page.


    8. Monitoring Breast Health, Hormones, & Cancer
    Breast health risk is determined by thermograms. This is the most important reason for implementing thermograms into a "healthy" lifestyle as women and their medical providers can monitor breast health with visual confirmations. By educating the consumer on the importance of breast thermography in order to determine breast health, then the consumer can demand a higher quality and therefore more certified clinics will come about.

    Hormone levels (estrogen and progesterone) can be observed with breast thermography. Since thermography can monitor ALL environmental estrogens, estrogen therapies and the body's naturally occurring estrogen, it is an ideal tool for hormone and breast health treatments. Due to excess administration of estrogen therapies (bio-identical estrogen, soy, and flax) and environmental estrogens, most women have become progesterone imbalanced which means progesterone deficient. Breast health scales are therefore graded on a progesterone deficiency from mild to severe or 1-3 (relative). TH-1 is normal, or non-vascular, and hormonally balanced. Please note hormone levels are just for breast health assessment and are not FDA approved for breast thermography.

    Breast thermography can also be used to monitor all traditional and alternative breast cancer treatments by analyzing vascularity in the breasts. If a treatment is working then vascularity or neoangiogenesis will be reduced. If treatment isn't working or is causing an increase in vascularity or neoangiogenesis the patient can see the results with her own eyes.


    9. Major and Minor Signs
    Cancers tend to form certain patterns and were categorized and classified by several studies. They were then catalogued and categorized into "Thermograms Major and Minor Signs" Dr. Hobbins and a group of medical doctors included these patterns in the minimum standards. These patterns are taught to certified breast thermography interpreters so they are able to give women a complete and detailed report. These signs can determine the TH score and/or risk of each breast. This is why black hot or reverse gray is mandatory in thermogram imaging, for in order to see what patterns have generated in the breasts, viewing the blood vessels is essential.

    Once again, thermograms view blood flow in the breasts. As cancers tend to form specific patterns having one or more of these major or minor signs with a temperature difference outside of normal can increase the TH score. Or, as preventive screening, having one of these major or minor signs might be noted in the report, but because the temperature difference is still within normal limits patient is notified of this finding and then monitored with an early recall.