State-of-the-Art Diagnosis

University Hospital has an ongoing commitment to provide the most current technologies and equipment for the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions. Consequently, physicians at the Breast Care Center have access to a number of leading-edge diagnostic tools. These include:

Mammography: For breast cancer screening, high quality mammography is the most effective technology presently available.With regular screening, lesions can frequently be found up to two years before they can be felt by clinical examination.

Ultrasound: Breast ultrasound is a painless, non-invasive method for evaluating breast abnormalities. With this diagnostic tool, the radiologist can distinguish between suspicious lesions requiring further evaluation and those that are almost certainly benign.

Biopsy: Many medical conditions, including all cases of cancer, must be diagnosed by removing a sample of tissue and sending it to a laboratory for examination. This procedure is called a biopsy. A variety of state-of-the art techniques are available at the Breast Care Center, in addition to excisional biopsies. Fortunately, about 80 percent of breast lesions that are biopsied are benign.

Fine Needle Aspiration: When a tumor can be felt, fine needle aspiration may be used to draw cells into a syringe. The cells are then examined under a microscope. The procedure often makes it possible to make a diagnosis in a matter of minutes.

Stereotactic Core Biopsy: When a suspicious mass is seen on an x-ray but cannot be felt, a stereotactic core biopsy may be performed. This computerized system guides a specially designed needle into the breast to obtain a core of tissue for examination. This method of obtaining a sample for diagnosis is less invasive than excisional biopsy.

Advanced Breast Biopsy Instrumentation Procedure (ABBI): This minimally invasive procedure uses stereotactic x-ray guidance to pinpoint a suspicious mass. A thin, tube-like device is inserted into the breast, and a specimen is removed for biopsy in a single pass. This sophisticated technology provides visualization throughout the procedure. Loss of healthy tissue is minimal, and there is no residual scarring which might mask lesions on a future mammogram.