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“Inland Imaging makes it so easy to be a patient,” she says. “They’re very generous to spend their time explaining everything. We are so, so fortunate to have them in this city. They are right at the top of the ladder in machinery and staff.” Barbara Hayden appreciates having “such amazing technology” in Spokane. A GOOD THING Barbara Hayden’s story is similar to Tennican’s. The 71-year-old faithfully went for her mammograms every year but stopped for several years while she was taking care of her significant other, who was ill and required multiple surgeries. “I was trying to keep him alive, so I just didn’t have time to keep up with my screenings,” Hayden says. “I have no idea what it was that told me to go in for a mammogram when I did. But it’s a good thing.” Hayden’s 3-D mammogram revealed “suspicious tissue” in one of her breasts. “Two weeks later they went in and took out three cancer cells—stage 0,” she says. “If we had waited a year, it would’ve been a different story.” Hayden underwent radiation therapy and has a good chance of being cancer free at her next scan, thanks to 3-D mammography, which doctors used to catch her cancer early. “I’m just finding it intriguing the advances they are making,” Hayden AGE Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Inland Imaging recommend women start having screening mammograms at age 40 and continue every year after that. 24 HEART BEAT SUMMER 2016
says. “From what I understand, 3-D mammograms have fewer false positives. We’re very lucky to have access to such amazing technology in Spokane.” IMPROVEMENT IN MAMMOGRAPHY Both Tennican and Hayden have every reason to marvel at how far breast cancer detection has come. “When breast imaging first started, you were lucky if you could find large cancers,” says Florence Gin, M.D., a radiologist and co-chief of breast imaging services at Inland Imaging. “There were no special techniques or dedicated machines. The cancers that were found were typically at advanced stages.” Since modern mammography was introduced in the late 1960s, images have gotten clearer, but traditional X-rays have their limitations. “Regular film screening mammography is a 2-D image. We see breast tissues stacked on top of each other, and we’re trying to look through it,” Dr. Gin says. 3-D mammography represents an improvement. “We take a 15-degree arc around the breast and get 15 pictures,” Dr. Gin says. “From those pictures, we make 1-millimeter slices. So instead of looking through all those layers, you’re looking at very small slices of the breast.” Those small slices of breast image enable radiologists to spot the littlest areas of concern. And the smaller the cancer at detection, the more likely it is to be at an earlier, more treatable stage. BENEFITS FOR ALL WOMEN 3-D mammography is too new to have data on long-term success, but early research is promising. There is potential for 3-D mammography to increase detection rates, lower recall rates for false positives and decrease biopsy and Mammograms: When to Start? There has been much controversy and confusion in recent years about when a woman should start getting mammograms and how often she should get them. After the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force changed its guidelines for starting screenings from age 40 to age 50 and for frequency from one year to two years, mammogram rates have declined. Among women ages 40 to 49, rates fell nearly 10 percent, and for women ages 50 to 64 they fell 6 percent, according to a study published in 2015 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Lowering mammography rates is a trend that health care providers would like to see reversed. “Screening mammography is the only method that shows mortality [death] and morbidity [illness] benefits,” says Florence Gin, M.D., a radiologist and co-chief of breast imaging services at Inland Imaging. “The bottom line is women who have screening-detected breast cancers live longer.” Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Inland Imaging follow the American College of Radiology and Society of Breast Imaging screening guidelines for breast cancer: A woman should begin screening mammograms at age 40 and then continue annually for as long as she is in good health. workup rates for noncancerous lumps and lesions. Because of the detailed images provided by 3-D mammography, many physicians recommend it for women with dense breast tissue. “But really,” Dr. Gin says, “there are benefits for all women.” Not all communities are fortunate enough to have the technology nearby. “No one is sure why, but Washington state has a higher rate of breast cancer than some other states,” Dr. Gin says, “so we are especially focused on serving our community to the best of our abilities.” Inland Imaging has been designated a breast imaging center of excellence by the American College of Radiology, the only such facility in Spokane. “We are accredited in mammography, stereotactic biopsy, breast ultrasound and breast ultrasound biopsy, and breast MRI,” Dr. Gin says. “We want to make sure we’re doing the best for our patients and keep getting better and better.” SCHEDULE YOUR MAMMOGRAM Identifying breast cancer early provides you with the best chances of survival. For women older than 40, a yearly mammogram should be a part of your health care routine. To schedule a mammogram, call Inland Imaging at 509-455-4455. READ ON YOUR TABLET OR PHONE: PHC.ORG/HEARTBEAT 25
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