South County Health's investment in 3-D mammography technology allows us to detect cancer early when it is most treatable.
Ann Kelley was diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in July of 2013. Ann found the tumor herself on a routine breast exam. The 5.5 centimeter tumor did not show up on the conventional mammogram her doctor ordered two days later. It was only revealed in an ultrasound. Ann later learned that she had dense breast tissue which made it more difficult to identify tumors on a regular scan. In fact, an estimated 40 percent of women have “dense” breast tissue — made up primarily of glandular and connective tissue — rather than “fatty” breast tissue. On a mammogram, dense breast tissue is white and so are tumors, making them more difficult to detect.
South County Health recognized this limitation in our equipment and responded by purchasing a 3-D tomosynthesis mammography unit in 2016. Breast tomosynthesis is an advanced form of mammography that uses low-dose x-rays to detect cancer early when it is most treatable. A 3-D mammogram offers significant advantages in detecting breast cancer in people with dense breast tissue because the 3-D image allows doctors to see beyond areas of density. This advanced screening tool is now available at South County Health’s East Greenwich, Warwick and Westerly Medical & Wellness Centers, as well as the South County Hospital campus.
Call 401-788-1486 to schedule your annual mammogram.
Washington County has one of the highest incident rates of breast cancer in Rhode Island. Compliance with annual mammograms has plummeted since the pandemic. We are aggressively responding to this drop in screenings by creating a progressive Breast Health Center to work in concert with our award-winning Cancer Center and our Center for Women’s Health to bring expanded access, best of class physicians, and state-of-the-art technology to treat and prevent breast cancer.
Sadly, Ann lost her courageous battle with cancer in 2019. However, her legacy will live on for so many Rhode Island women whose lives will be saved because of her work. She became an advocate who led the fight to create Rhode Island’s current law requiring all mammography providers to inform women of their breast density level as interpreted on their mammogram. Those with dense breasts are advised that they might benefit from an additional screening and to discuss options, such as an ultrasound, with their doctor. For Ann, it was a crusade to make sure other women would never be caught unaware, as she had been.
Click here to make a gift of support the Breast Health Center at South County Hospital.
