At Catawba Valley Imaging Center (CVIC), a service of Catawba Valley Health
System, you have access to some of the most advanced breast cancer screening
technology available. This includes digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT)
mammography, an imaging technique that creates a three-dimensional (3-D)
like image of breast tissue, to help screen patients for breast cancer.
While standard mammogram machines take a static picture from above the
breast, the tomosynthesis tube moves over the breast in an arc.
A 3-D mammogram has 20 projection images each taken at slightly different
angles along that arc. The information is fed into a computer which reconstructs
composite images into extremely thin slices. Just as in computerized tomography
(CT), the ability to evaluate breast tissue without overlapping structures
offers greater image clarity. So it’s fundamentally like a mammogram
with an enhanced ability to reconstruct the image into multiple thin slices,
providing a clearer image of the breast tissue.
The introduction of tomosynthesis technology is one of many significant
investments made by Catawba Valley Health System to more accurately diagnose
patients with breast cancer. Women who are identified as having dense
breasts can particularly benefit from DBT screening as research shows
they have a slightly increased risk of developing breast cancer.
Providing the most advanced care for women, including those notified of
increased breast density, is Catawba Valley Health System's top priority.
With DBT mammography, we can get the same or slightly better degree of
sensitivity as with digital screening mammography, but it is much more
specific. This decreases the number of callbacks for screening mammography,
but at the same time increase our cancer detection rate.
For more information about breast screenings, please contact
Catawba Valley Imaging Center at 828-485-2774 located at 1501 Tate Blvd. SE, Suite 101 Hickory, NC 28602.