1. A method for analyzing mammograms comprising: determining, via a processing unit, a contour line that divides an object area from a background area of a mammogram; using the contour line to position the mammogram relative to another mammogram and to scale the mammogram to reduce the background area relative to the object area; implementing an edge treatment to determine lateral boundary lines of the mammogram; reading gray scale values of the mammogram along scan lines positioned perpendicular to an outer edge of the mammogram; determining in each case a position of a steepest gradient of the gray scale values along the scan lines; and determining the lateral boundary line of the mammogram from the positions of the steepest gradients.