Breast health

Mammograms are the most effective way to find breast cancer early. The sooner breast cancer is diagnosed, the more likely it can be treated. Even if you need specialized screenings due to dense breast tissue or breast implants, our imaging services can meet your unique needs.

Our hospital provides you with access to advanced breast imaging capabilities as well as diagnostic procedures, including:

• 3D mammograms — Also called tomography, 3D mammography is FDA-approved for providing superior images for women with dense breast tissue. This allows our radiologists to more accurately screen, biopsy or determine false positives.
• Diagnostic mammogram — Should we detect an abnormality, our technicians perform this procedure that will X-ray your breast from several angles to give more detailed images to aid in diagnosis.
• 3D stereotactic breast biopsy — 3D-guided breast biopsy is a minimally invasive procedure performed onsite using 3D imaging. 3D imaging allows the radiologist to sample the breast tissue more accurately, shortening procedure times.
• Ultrasound-guided biopsy — During this diagnostic procedure, sound waves are used to help locate any lumps or abnormalities and obtain a tissue sample.

Your comfort is always a priority when providing care. Our mammogram technology has stabilizing compression that curves to the shape of your breast. This feature is designed to make your mammogram experience simple without compromising image quality.

Breast cancer is identified in stages ranging from zero (noninvasive cancer with no spreading of cancerous cells to normal tissue or lymph nodes) to four (the most advanced stage with the cancer having spread to other organs or tissues in the body away from the breast). Staging is conducted to help guide treatment decisions.

We offer different types of breast cancer surgery depending on staging and your unique health needs. Many surgeries are combined with radiation therapy, chemotherapy or both.

Our surgery offerings include:

• Lumpectomy — In a lumpectomy, only the lump itself and surrounding tissue are removed. Most often radiation therapy or chemotherapy is used following surgery.
• Partial mastectomy — A partial mastectomy involves removing part of the affected breast along with the lump itself. A quadrantectomy is a partial mastectomy in which one-quarter of the breast is removed.
• Re-excision — Following surgery, sometimes cancer cells are detected in the tissue that’s been removed. In that case, a re-excision may need to be performed to remove more tissue to make sure no cancer remains at the edges (called clear margins).
• Total mastectomy — If our surgeon is not able to remove enough breast tissue alone to get clear margins, a full mastectomy to remove the entire affected breast may be needed. And if needed, a double mastectomy will be performed to remove both breasts. This is done most often as a preventative surgery in women who are at very high risk for breast cancer.

Breast reconstruction — If you have a mastectomy, how your body looks and feels after surgery can be a big concern. Losing a part of your body can feel like losing part of yourself, and your emotional health is an important part of healing after surgery. Breast reconstruction surgery can help. Sometimes reconstructive surgery can be performed at the same time as the mastectomy.