Upgrades to Imaging Center hope to make mammogram experience more comfortable

Mar. 27—Scheduling a mammogram can be a daunting experience — but it doesn't have to be an unpleasant one.

On Tuesday, the Somerset-Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the recently added 3-D mammography suite at the Lake Cumberland Imaging Center in the MedPark West Medical Complex.

Dr. Stacey Bowlds, a general surgeon at Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital, introduced the crowd gathered at the Imaging Center to the improvements made to help a woman's visit there be a more positive, comforting experience.

"What I set out to do when I came here was to make sure we had safe, innovative care for our patients here in our community," said Bowlds. "... When things get old, we remedy them, and that always happens. Times are always changing.

"What's great is that it came at a time when one of our 3-D mammography machines was at the end of its life and needed to be replaced," she added. "So we all sat down and put our heads together (to consider) how can we do what's best for our community?"

One clear task was to replace the machine, and new 3-D mammography equipment was installed last December. Another older model also experienced an upgrade, and as such, Bowlds said they are now able to detect breast cancers sooner and when they are smaller — and they are doing so with invasiveness at a minimum.

"What we know about cancer is that when you find it early, that's when you get cures," said Bowlds.

The machine that needed to be replaced was at the hospital, and Bowlds' team realized that all of the needed care could be done safely at the Imaging Center so as to "eliminate (at least part of) the scary hospital portion."

The new equipment has the ability to produce clear three-dimensional images that help medical professionals define lesions or abnormalities in the breast; the three-dimensional aspect helps not only diagnose where the abnormality is but also what it might be.

"We have been able to offer stereotactic biopsies ... for even smaller and smaller lesions," said Bowlds. "Where we used to just be able to do biopsies on an ultrasound, we can now do them with this new mammography."

Bowlds thanked Jessica Simpson for being a "nurse navigator," playing an instrumental role as being a "patient champion" when someone is facing a tough next step.

"She's constantly on the phone with my team at the office to make sure that our patients get their care coordinated, get it done safely, and get it done quickly," said Bowlds, who added to the Commonwealth Journal that Simpson was "one part of a very big team in helping the women of our community."

Another key different is a waiting area designed to make the stressful experience as "comforting and patient-centered" as possible, said Bowlds. Instead of a cold, sterile space, Bowlds' team has created one that's warm and private, almost like something one would find at a spa.

"We know it's not comfortable and nobody wants to set their timer once a year to do it, but if we can make it a comfortable experience, then we know more people will come and do that preventative-type medicine," said Bowlds. "... (There's) comforting music, kind of a nice ambiance."

Bowlds also introduced the Pristina Dueta machine which allows patients to press a button and control the level of compression applied to their breasts while receiving a mammogram.

"A machine is a machine, right? But we are people and we feel things a little bit differently," she said. "... Like any compressor, (a machine) will compress until it's done. But if that's uncomfortable, that's never the aim. We get can the pictures we want with this new imaging where it's perfectly clear without giving our patients as much discomfort."

Also, Bowlds' team has looked at the experience of coming to get surgery done. Magseed marker technology serves as a biopsy clip that allows for a more comfortable and efficient way of helping surgeons locate a small lesion the previous method of inserting a wire.

"I tell my patients, it's basically like a metal detector on a beach," she said. "... You take it, it beeps, we know exactly how far away that seed is from where I need to be. I know where that is compared to where the mass is, and I take it out."

Bowlds added that there is a breast MRI capability at the facility, which offers another method of determining if something warrants a biopsy, if that can't be determined via the mammogram.

"We don't want to put our patients through anything that they don't need, but we also don't want to fall short," she said. "We want to be able to find the things we need and treat what needs to be treated. The MRI ... can show us smaller lesions that maybe are concerning in high-risk patient populations, and now having one here that is operational, our patients don't have to travel, which is huge for me, because (travel) adds another layer of stress. If we can keep our patients close to home and do innovative and great quality care for them, that is what I want."