Grant Memorial Hospital announced that it has received its new mammography" href="/tag/digital-mammography.html">digital mammography unit; the new system 
represents a significant addition to the healthcare service the hospital delivers to women. Teresa Snyder, director of radiology, Grant Memorial Hospital, said "We will be providing the same quality mammography services as before only we will be using our new digital mammo machine," She added "There are so many advantages for both patients and physicians," Dr. Snyder explained "Digital exams take less time. In addition, our digital platform allows for computer-aided detection which can help the radiologist increase cancer detection rates up to 20%. Studies have shown a substantially significant increased cancer-detection rate in women 50 and under and women with dense breasts."
National statistics in the United States mentioned that one in eight women is going to have breast cancer within her lifetime. However, the cure rate for localized cancer, diagnosed in its early stages, is significantly high. The 12-year survival rate is 95% for women identified with breast cancer when it is less than 1 centimeter in size. Dr. Snyder also said that the early diagnosis provides women with new options for breast conserving surgery; she said "that is why it is so important that women have regular mammograms. Dr. Snyder added "Grant Memorial is committed to providing the best screening opportunities for the women of our community," she continued "A digital mammogram can catch many irregularities that standard mammograms might miss. In fact, it has shown to be 28% more effective in detecting cancer for women in certain groups, primarily those 50 and younger and those difficult to image."
Digital mammography systems use computers and digital sensors to generate improved breast images. These images are then displayed on high resolution monitors and then digitally stored. There are various advantages of digital mammography, including higher accuracy, since the technology produces high resolution images that are showing details more than traditional images, which allows easier detection of early signs of breast cancer. Another advantage is the significant time saving since there is almost no time required for film processing and the produced images are viewable in few seconds. Moreover, digital mammography systems feature reduced radiation exposure; as the need for repeating the procedure as a result to radiation dose is significantly lower than conventional mammography, which decreases the overall exposure to X-rays.
