FASTER, MORE ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS FOR SUSPECTED BREAST · PDF fileFASTER, MORE ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS FOR SUSPECTED BREAST CANCER “Our focus is rapidity of diagnosis. We're eliminating

FASTER, MORE ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS FOR SUSPECTED BREAST CANCER“Our focus is rapidity of diagnosis. We're eliminating unnecessary delays in a one-stop shop environment.” - Dr. Peter Doris, Surgeon and Physician Lead, Breast Health Clinic, Jim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre

PUBLIC OPEN HOUSE Get a sneak peek inside the Jim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre, located at the corner of 140th Street and Fraser Highway in Surrey, by joining us at our public open house Monday, May 30 from 3pm – 7pm.

For more details go to www.fraserhealth.ca

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Pattison agrees. Give to the Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation today and he will generously match your gift.Donate now atwww.smhfoundation.com

Women within the Fraser Health region will have access to a special Breast Health Clinic that streamlines and signi�cantly reduces the diagnostic process for suspected breast cancer, starting June 1 at the Jim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre.

The clinic, based on the European Society of Mastology (Eusoma) model, will bring together the equipment and specialist’s necessary to provide a de�nitive diagnosis 99 per cent of the time, in less than 21 days from when the appointment at the Clinic is booked. The current average is three months for diagnosis.

Quicker, accurate answersSurrey resident Heidi Kerr, who is currently being treated for breast cancer, recalls how distressing it was to wait six weeks for a diagnosis after having an abnormal mammogram.

“The waiting is de�nitely the worst part,” Kerr said. “The fact that you don’t know: do you have cancer or do you not have cancer?”

Much of the delay in the typical diagnostic process is due to several appointments at di�erent locations. The Breast Health Clinic has a multi-disciplinary, integrated approach that provides same-day access

for three key tests – physical exam, medical imaging (mammogram and/or ultrasound) and tissue sample (biopsy) – and ensures coordination between specialists to provide a faster, accurate diagnosis. These tests can often be completed in one visit.

"I have always had great compassion for the women who are going through the diagnostic cascade for months and all they want to know is, do I or don't I?” said Dr. Peter Doris, head of surgery at Surrey Memorial Hospital and physician lead for the Breast Health Clinic. “We're eliminating unnecessary delays in a one-stop-shop environment.”

This “triple assessment” will be supported with Surrey’s �rst digital mammogram unit, which will produce more detailed images and enable the use of new biopsy equipment that can rapidly and accurately identify a greater range of lesions.

Many women will get a de�nite benign result on the same day, and a large percentage will receive a de�nitive diagnosis in as little as seven days. Only a small proportion of cases will be complicated enough to require 21 days for diagnosis.

Patient-centred approachThe second-�oor location for the Breast Health Clinic was chosen to provide ready access to

imaging equipment and reduce patient travel within the building. A special waiting room will provide breast health patients with a calming, private space while waiting for their tests when several are performed on the same day.

Importance of regular check-upsIt’s important to perform breast self-exams regularly and have a medical breast exam at least once every 24 months. If you have a change in your breast please see your family doctor. Your doctor can refer you to the Breast Health Clinic at the Pattison Outpatient Centre if further investigation is required.

By age 50, women should make screening mammograms part of their regular health routine - once every two years. For easy access, the BC Cancer Agency’s Screening Mammography Program has added a new location that will reside within the Pattison Outpatient Centre on the same �oor as the Breast Health Clinic.

To book a screening mammography appointment please call 604-877-6187.