At ella health, we go above and beyond because your health is at stake.
In most cases, a mammogram only requires four images. Sometimes, however, that’s not enough. There may be more breast tissue than is captured in the specified round of imaging. ella health technologists are educated to determine whether extra images are needed and authorized to take them while the patient is there rather than having to ask her to return later.
On a recent afternoon, Sara Henise, was faced with just that scenario. She took the images that she was supposed to, but she felt it wasn’t enough. She explains:
“I was working with a patient who had come in for a routine mammogram. I felt that in order to include all of this patient’s breast tissue I needed to do two additional images and because of my training and my experience, I knew what two views were needed. I’m careful about this because I don’t want to put patients through testing they don’t need.”
The additional images revealed that the patient had a very early stage of cancer.
“Of course you always hope that the patient doesn’t have cancer, but if she does, you really hope you can diagnose it early so that it can be more easily treated. In this case, I was so glad that I was able to take the extra images. This woman’s doctor was able to quickly diagnose the cancer and go over the treatment options with her. This is why this job is important to me; I want to be able to make a difference in women’s lives.”
Breast cancers found at an early stage are the most treatable have the best possible outcomes. These early stage cancers generally require less drastic treatments than later stage cancers. Knowing this and understanding breast health guidelines for screening can save your life.
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