Banner Del E. Webb first in Valley to offer new imaging option for breast cancer detection
Comparison of a mammogram with a BSGI image
SUN CITY WEST, Ariz. (May 3, 2010) – Yearly mammograms save lives by detecting breast cancer at its earliest and most treatable stage. Sometimes however, the mammogram does not provide clear information for a diagnosis. For women with questionable mammograms, this can be an agonizing time until either MRI or biopsy determines whether the mass is cancerous or benign. Now, there is a new option in the Valley these women – Breast Specific Gamma Imaging (BSGI).
Banner Del E. Webb recently installed the new imaging system and is accepting patients for the procedure at its Women’s Imaging Center in the Louisa Kellam Center for Women’s Health on the nonprofit’s Sun City West campus at 14502 W. Meeker Blvd. Banner Del E. Webb is the only hospital in the Valley to offer this state-of-the-art imaging system.
BSGI is a molecular breast imaging technique that helps physicians detect early stage cancers even in dense breast tissue, scarred breast tissue or when implants are present. Because of its high rate of accuracy, BSGI can help patients avoid unnecessary biopsies. It is also an alternative to other imaging techniques such as MRI.
While mammography is a highly sensitive screening tool, meaning it is effective in detecting breast abnormalities, it is not highly specific in determining whether the abnormality is malignant or benign. This is where BSGI comes in.
“We find BSGI to be a proven and effective tool in the early detection of breast cancer when mammography is inconclusive,” said Dr. Dan Wright, head of Medical Imaging at the nonprofit medical center. “Even though mammography is our first line screening tool, when we are faced with an image that is inconclusive, we now have another option to deliver fast, accurate results.”
With BSGI, the patient receives a pharmaceutical tracing agent that is absorbed by the cells in the body. Cancerous cells have a higher metabolic rate and absorb a greater amount of the tracing agent than healthy cells making the malignancies easier to detect. During the screening, the breasts are positioned similar to a mammogram, but there is no compression and patients are seated throughout the entire procedure, which takes about 45 minutes.
An ongoing fundraising drive led by the Sun Health Foundation enabled Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center to purchase the BSGI system.
About Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center
Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center is a 404-bed, acute-care nonprofit medical center in Sun City West offering heart care, emergency care, general surgery, orthopedic surgery, cancer care, obstetrics and gynecology, outpatient services, physical rehabilitation and behavioral services. Banner Del E. Webb is part of Banner Health, a nonprofit health care system with 22 hospitals throughout the West.
