St. Joseph's breast imaging machine gives women control of their own exams

Susan Forde is no stranger to getting a mammogram.

The 65-year-old has had more than 15 screenings to detect for breast cancer, which has affected generations of women in her family.

But the potentially life-saving procedure hasn't always been a pleasant experience for her.

"When I first started having mammogram exams, I would get bruises the next day and sore muscles," she said. "You sort of grate your teeth and hold your breath and before you know it they release you."

The exam typically prescribed for women aged 50 to 70 is often monitored by a technologist – who consensually controls the pressure of screening plates that compress and flatten a woman's breasts.

However, health care professionals at St. Joseph's Hospital have introduced a new self-operating screening machine that allows patients to control the amount of pressure placed on them during exams.

 "This particular mammogram was like not even having a mammogram it was that comfortable," said Forde, who was among the first 600 women to test out the Senographe Pristina.

 A remote control that controls compression and pace is meant to reduce patient anxiety, allowing a technologist to focus on precise positioning – increasing the speed and efficiency of the exam.

 "Just the fact that you have a little bit of a job that you get to do yourself and you're in control a bit," said Jane Terhaerdt, another patient who tested out the machine designed by women for women. "I think that reduces the vulnerability just a little bit."

St. Joseph's is the first health care centre to install the Senographe Pristina, and the first in North America to feature a self-control compression tool.

Encourage more exams

The state-of-the art machine offers additional features to reduce discomfort during screenings such as gentle, rounded platform edges and cushioned armrests.

Dr. Anat Kornecki, who's the medical director of Breast Imaging at St. Joseph's, said women who experience painful procedures often times don't come back for another checkup. In fact, the hospital has reported up to 45 per cent of women don't return for further breast imaging.

"The procedure is less painful, the patient doesn't move as much, the procedure is very quick, and we can get more of the breast covered because the patient is more comfortable and our imaging is way better because there's no motion … the images are sharper," said Kornecki. "If there are any problems, we can detect them earlier."

"The whole premise is to encourage more women to come back for subsequent mammogram exams, or to encourage women who have never come for a mammogram but have been prescribed one," said Heather Chalmers, the Canadian general manager of GE Healthcare, the company that designed the machine.

The machine has tested more than 45 women every day this month, with four more machines coming to London by December. 

Dr. Anat Kornecki tells London Morning about the new machine. You can listen to the interview here.