Additional Screening to Detect Breast Cancer Earlier in Some Women Now Available
Additional Screening to Detect Breast Cancer Earlier in Some Women Now Available 
“I’m excited to announce Covenant Breast Health Center is the first medical center in the state of Michigan to offer Automated Whole Breast Screening Ultrasound (AWBUS), a supplemental screening exam for women with dense breasts and/or breast implants,” says Mark Ludka, MD, Radiologist and Section Chief of Mammography at Covenant HealthCare.
AWBUS is a painless procedure using ultrasound. No compression is needed and it takes about 20 minutes to perform. While AWBUS is not a replacement for screening mammography, studies show that an ultrasound examination in conjunction with a mammogram can find more cancers in women with dense breasts than by mammography alone. The goal of annual screenings is to find cancers early, when they are small and easier to treat.
Dr. Ludka explains breast imagers have long known dense breast tissue makes it more difficult to detect cancer. Spotting tiny cancers in the mammogram of a fatty breast is easier because cancer shows up white on dark fatty-breast tissue. However, cancers are harder to find in the mammogram of a dense breast because both cancer and dense-breast-tissue show up white.
According to Linda DeGuise, Manager of Imaging & Diagnostics at Covenant, “All Covenant mammography reports now include a statement describing the patient’s breast density level on a scale from 1 (fatty) to 4 (extremely dense). AWBUS is highly recommended, in conjunction with screening mammography, in patients with a breast density level of 3 or 4.”
The patient can be scheduled and the exam performed at the same time as her annual screening mammogram. AWBUS is cleared by the FDA as an additional examination in conjunction with screening mammography. The level of insurance coverage varies and patients are advised to check with their insurance providers prior to having the exam done.
Since June of 2014, more than 60 women have utilized this new technology. “We are looking forward to using this technology to service additional patients, as research tells us nearly 40% of women have dense-breast tissue,” says DeGuise.
For more information or to schedule an AWBUS appointment, call 989.583.6278.
The purchase of the AWBUS equipment was made possible by the generosity of Covenant HealthCare Foundation donors and Red Carpet events supporters and sponsors.
Know the impact breast density has your screening by clicking here.
About the Covenant Breast Health Center
Covenant Breast Health Center was designed to provide a compassionate, respectful patient experience while simultaneously pursing the clinical objective of directing and diagnosing breast cancer at its earliest, most curable stage.
Covenant Breast Health Program holds various distinguished honors, including a designation as an American College of Radiology (ACR) Breast Imaging Center of Excellence, the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC) three-year full accreditation award, the 2014 Women’s Choice Award as one of America’s Best Breast Centers /American’s Best Hospitals in Cancer Care, and accreditation by the Commission on Cancer. These organizations recognize Covenant HealthCare for its commitment to providing the highest quality evaluation and management of patients with breast disease.