Minimally Invasive Breast Biopsies Now Offered

Spectrum Health Reed City Hospital has invested in new technology to enhance breast biopsies. With the $180,000 investment, a state-of-the-art stereotactic biopsy table has been added to the hospital’s imaging department. Using this high tech system, Thomas Campana, MD, general surgeon, performs breast biopsies that are minimally invasive, offering key advantages to his patients.

The new technology utilizes ultrasound or stereotactic (mammographically guided) procedures. Both procedures are minimally invasive and recommended by the College of Surgeons and the American Society of Breast Surgeons.

For both types of procedures, the patient is positioned on the table, the area is numbed and a quarter-inch nick is made in the skin, according to Dr. Campana. A hollow needle is then guided into the mass, and two or more samples are removed.

If the biopsy is for a mass that is so small or deep within the breast that it cannot be detected by touch, Dr. Campana uses ultrasound imaging. He can see the needle on a screen as it moves toward and into the mass. Fluid and tissue are sampled in the needle’s hollow core. For very small masses that have been detected by mammogram, the stereotactic biopsy procedure is used. A digital mammogram shows images of the tumor site, and a needle is guided into it to remove a small core of tissue.

“Stereotactic procedures allow me to find pre-cancers and cancers of a small size, “says Dr. Campana. “Depending on the size, this procedure can remove a majority of the mass, making it possible to get a highly accurate diagnosis.”

Both types of procedures provide important benefits.

“Because these procedures are minimally invasive, they do not result in scarring, and the patient can usually resume her normal activities right away,” says Dr. Campana. “These procedures are extremely accurate, less expensive than a surgical biopsy, and result in shorter recovery times. We’re very happy that we now have the technology to do these procedures here at Reed City Hospital.”

Dr. Campana is a board-certified surgeon and a member of the American Society of Breast Cancer Surgeons.

Spectrum Health Reed City Hospital is a 25 bed acute care hospital located in Reed City, Mich. that has adopted the Planetree approach to care giving. A model of patient centered care in a healing environment, staff is committed to improving medical care from the patient’s perspective, empowering patients and families through education, information and encouraging healing partnerships with caregivers. Spectrum Health Reed City Hospital offers a newly renovated emergency department with private treatment rooms, an expanded medical imaging department, a regional cancer treatment center and an Eden Care award winning 54 bed Skilled Nursing facility. Spectrum Health Reed City Hospital has been recognized for its quality care by the Michigan Quality Improvement Organization and has earned the Governor’s Award of Excellence for Improving Care in the Hospital Setting for 4 consecutive years, the Total Benchmark Solution quality award for 2005 and the 2006 and 2007 VHA Leadership Award for clinical excellence.