A More Comfortable Mammography Experience for Women Now at Normal’s Ft. Jesse Imaging & Gale Keeran Center for Women

[October 07, 2020]  Relaxed, comfortable, and mammogram - words that rarely go together. After all, having your breasts compressed tightly between two firm surfaces while you stand awkwardly half-clothed is certainly not the most pleasant experience.

Ft. Jesse Imaging & Gale Keeran Center for Women in Normal is now offering patients a new option in mammography: Senographe Pristina™. Designed from the ground up with input from women, it is the first mammography system to provide women with the “three Cs”: comfort, confidence, and clarity.

The newly renovated mammography suites create a sensory experience for each patient, and the machine is designed to resemble a piece of artwork - not just medical equipment - with rounded edges and elegant lighting. However, the design is more than just aesthetic; the gentle, rounded corners of the image receptor, where a woman’s breast is placed, completely changes the stance of the traditional mammogram. Instead of tensing her pectoral muscles while holding traditional handgrips - which can make it hard to acquire high quality images - women lean comfortably on the armrests, relaxing their muscles. This simplifies positioning, compression, and improves image quality. The image receptor is also thinner and does not poke into the ribcage.
The design also improves the technologist’s workflow, leading to quick and precise exams.

An Industry First - Patient Assisted Compression

Under the radiographers’s supervision and guidance, women can now play an active role in determining their level of breast compression, with the help of a remote control. GE Healthcare’s Senographe Pristina™ with Dueta allows each patient to control the compression using a wireless remote.

G.E. Healthcare’s research shows that most women will actually apply more pressure than a technologist would with this system, again, leading to improved image quality.

Minimizing Pain

We know that many women dread and even skip their annual screening due to pain. In one study, researchers found that 46 percent of women skipped their regular mammogram because the first one hurt too much. In another published study, researchers interviewed 2,600 women about their experience with a screening mammogram and found that 10-15 percent experienced “moderate to severe” levels of distress or pain.

When women skip their screening mammogram, they may be putting their lives at risk. Our radiologists have made an investment in Senographe Pristina™ to help more women say “YES” to their annual mammogram! Ft. Jesse Imaging Center & Gale Keeran Center for Women believes that a test, which could save a woman’s life, simply should not hurt.

Ft. Jesse Imaging & Gale Keeran Center for Women 2200 Ft. Jesse Rd Ste 120/130
Normal, IL

[Melissa Larson
Marketing Strategist]