Digital Mammography Up and Running at
Stephens County Hospital

Toccoa, Georgia - October 18, 2004 - Like their conventional counterparts, digital mammograms still require compression and radiation for images. But instead of capturing x-rays on film, Stephens County Hospital will now be viewing mammograms on computer monitors.

Approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000, GE Medical spent 13 years and more than $100 million developing the Senographe 200D full-field system. “This is the single biggest advance in mammography in 30 years and now our community has access to a powerful new and improved tool for screening and detecting breast cancer,” says Hospital Administrator Ed Gambrell. “Because the computer image is digital, the radiologist are able to magnify, brighten, darken or change the viewpoint on suspicious spots without having the patient return for additional films”. Although traditional, analog mammography is an excellent imaging tool, digital systems result in fewer false alarms which helps avoid anxiety and uncomfortable follow-up exams.

“Digital enables me to evaluate the patient’s mammogram in greater detail,” says Dr. Mahendra Patel, Women’s Health Radiologist at Stephens County Hospital. “I believe digital mammography will lead to a higher detection rate for cancer and ultimately, increase the survival rate due to early intervention and treatment.” With the assistance of Computer Aided Detection, the computer system actually marks areas on the images to cue the radiologist to review that particular area in greater detail - hence “a second technology” is in use. Physicians who request copies of their patients’ images will be receiving them on a CD that includes instructions for access.

For more information or to make an appointment, contact the Radiology Department of Stephens County Hospital at 282.4271.