Bluewater Health is celebrating the installation of the first of two state-of-the-art mammography machines at its Sarnia site.
The first patient breast cancer screenings were completed Tuesday morning.
Foundation Executive Director Kathy Alexander said purchasing the new equipment wouldn't have been possible without $1.1 million in fundraising from the Sarnia-Lambton community.
That included proceeds from the Dream Home Lottery in 2018.
"We actually were still fundraising for the mammography equipment and [the lottery] sold out," said Alexander. "We had an incredible lead contribution from Mrs. Patricia Carter who made a substantial gift toward the mammography equipment based on personal experience as a nurse and some family history. It's just wonderful to actually see it come on-site to Bluewater Health and we know the impact is going to be tremendous."
Alexander said Bluewater Health provides over 12,000 mammograms each year to women across the region.
Medical Director, Diagnostic Imaging Dr. Youssef Almalki said the new technology places Bluewater Health on par with much larger centres such as Harvard and the University of Toronto.
“The new equipment has the ability to perform Digital Breast Tomosynthesis, or DBT, as well as contrast-enhanced mammography," said Dr. Almalki in a statement. "There are many advantages to DBT and contrast mammography especially in characterizing abnormalities on mammogram and improving the diagnostic power of mammography for all women – including those with dense breast tissue."
The installation of the second machine is now underway.
Bluewater Health hospital in Sarnia. 9 September 2020. (BlackburnNews.com photo by Colin Gowdy)