Oswego Health Services Center installs latest 3D mammography equipment with $50K state grant

OSWEGO, N.Y. — Oswego Health recently used a $50,000 state grant to install mammography equipment at the Oswego Health Services Center in Oswego.

New York State Senator Patty Ritchie (R–Heuvelton) helped secured the grant funding, Oswego Health said in a news release.

With the funding, the organization bought equipment that is used for three-dimensional (3-D) mammography and digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT).

The equipment provides an “advanced form” of mammography that uses a low-dose x-ray system and computer reconstructions to create three-dimensional images of the breasts. The 3D technology “improves the accuracy” of mammography and clarifies areas of overlapping tissue, Oswego Health said.

Using tomosynthesis, the breast is compressed as in a mammography exam, but with less pressure. The x-ray tube moves in a circular arc around the breast providing one millimeter slices that produce greater visibility to see tissue details, as described in the release.

With the new equipment, Oswego Health contends the benefits include a 3D mammography exam that provides “better, earlier breast-cancer detection compared to 2D alone.”

In addition, the equipment finds between 20 percent and 65 percent more invasive breast cancers than 2D alone, and it reduces unnecessary callbacks “by up to 40 percent.”

“Breast tomosynthesis is an excellent technology that allows doctors to view the breasts in thin sections as though they are interpreting a CT as compared to a standard x-ray/mammogram,” Dr. Matthew Westpfal, chief radiologist at Oswego Health, said in the release. “This allows for substantially increased resolution and detection of abnormalities when examining dense breasts.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com