Published On: April 3, 2019
Thanks to the generosity of donors in St. Thomas and Elgin County, the St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital (STEGH) and the STEGH Foundation have made another important transformation in patient care, with a recent investment in mammography to support women (and men) in the community.
The St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital has made renovations to house a second mammography unit. On April 3, health care partners, donors, and colleagues came together to celebrate the opening of the new mammography suite.
STEGH’s current Mammography Unit has made an impact for patients, with more than 6,700 mammograms performed in 2018. The unit has high quality 2D & 3D imaging capabilities, allowing clinicians to capture multiple images for increased diagnostic accuracy.
“The impact of STEGH’s mammography program has been instrumental in the early detection of breast cancer. The imaging technology has improved substantially over the years, giving women more confidence, faster results and the care they need to overcome a positive diagnosis.” explains Yolanda Mundt, Manager of Diagnostic Imaging, “With the acquisition of a second mammography unit, STEGH will be able to accommodate an increase in patient visits for many years. This is our promise to the women (and men) of Elgin County and St. Thomas.”
With anticipated growth in patient volumes for this life-saving screening, this second mammography unit has a new tool – contrast mammography – which will allow clinicians to accurately diagnose the extent of the cancer. The impact for patients is significant, as it is a tool to help make sure that dense tissue is not hiding a tumour.
Approximately one in eight Canadian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. With the improvements with screening, and advances in Diagnostic Imaging, especially Mammography, mortality rates have been cut by 42% since 1986.
STEGH is an accredited Mammography Centre with the Canadian Association of Radiologists, and an official Ontario Breast Screening Program (OBSP) of Cancer Care Ontario. The goal of the OBSP program is to find breast cancers when they are small, less likely to have spread and more likely to be treated successfully.
Given the demand for screening services in Elgin County, STEGH requires the equipment and tools to respond to the health care needs of patients; this includes the purchase of the second Mammography Unit. This unit will allow STEGH to accommodate growth over the next ten years in the community, and will enable the hospital to balance demand for a long time to come.
Photo: (LT – RT) Sharon Keenan (Breast Cancer Survivor), Robert Biron (President & CEO), Yolanda Mundt (Manager, Diagnostic Imaging), Cathy Crane (Chair – STEGH Board of Directors), Brenda Fleming (Director, South West Regional Cancer Program), Kathy Cook Noble (President – STEGH Foundation Board of Directors).