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| Vol. 22, No. 10 |
| June 1, 2000 |
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St. Luke's Installs System for Early Diagnosis of Breast Cancer An advanced signal processing system for the early detection of breast cancer has been installed at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital. The ImageChecker provides physicians at St. Luke's with image analysis that aids reading of routine mammograms. ImageChecker uses a computer program to identify and mark suspicious features in mammograms that might warrant a second look by radiologists. It reduces the number of oversight errors by functioning much like a spell checker in a word processing program. According to Dr. Phan T. Huynh, medical director of St. Luke's Women's Center radiology department, the spell-check analogy is an apt one: "Not every region identified by the program will be cancerous, just as not every word flagged by a computer will be spelled incorrectly. But, it serves as an extra check for physicians and helps them find potentially cancerous areas as early as possible." Early detection is critical to treating breast cancer. "Mammograms can detect cancerous legions long before lumps can be felt, even by an experienced examiner," adds Dr. Huynh. "But, the detection of breast cancer in a mammogram can be a very difficult task due to the complex nature of breast tissue and the subtle characteristics of the disease. With use of the ImageChecker, however, we'll be better positioned than ever to detect breast cancer early - when it's most treatable." Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death among women in the United States, accounting for more than 43,000 deaths annually. Only lung cancer causes more cancer deaths in women. According to R2 Technology, Inc., the manufacturer of ImageChecker, for every 100,000 cancers currently detected by mammography, use of their device could result in early detection of an additional 12,800 breast cancers. "Given the importance of early detection," says Dr. Huynh, "we believe this technology represents a significant contribution to our mammography screening program here at St. Luke's." - CHRIS FERRIS
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