Superior and compassionate breast care with cutting edge technology

Sharp Eyes on the Big Picture

Radiology Associates of Albuquerque

When it comes to developing a state-of-the-art women’s imaging center, getting a clearer view of breast cancer is part of a much bigger picture. For the professionals at Radiology Associates of Albuquerque (RAA), New Mexico, adopting digital technology was just one aspect of the center’s drive to become the best practice of its kind in the state.

“It was more than just transitioning from analog to digital mammography,” according to RAA’s Technical Director and Lead Technologist Michele Duran, R.T., R.D.M.S. The development of the women’s health arm of RAA, High Resolution, was “part of a philosophical decision to combine the mammography services of two centers, convert to digital mammography, and provide services unlike any other center in New Mexico.”

The architect of the ambitious undertaking was Gary L. Wood, M.D., Director of Breast Imaging for RAA. Dr. Wood envisioned a comprehensive practice that would serve patients from routine screening to pre-surgical planning and post-surgical follow-up. To that end, he assembled a multidisciplinary panel of radiologists, pathologists and breast surgeons, along with radiation and medical oncologists.

“Our collaboration with our colleagues in other disciplines of breast cancer treatment allows us to have a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach that takes advantage of standardized practices and policies to serve patients in the best manner possible,” Dr. Wood explains. “When the entire team is working together with a common underlying philosophy and approach, patient care is maximized over individual practice habits and philosophy.”

Designed for Digital

When the promise of digital mammography was supported by the results of the Digital Mammographic Imaging Screening Trial (DMIST) – which demonstrated that digital mammography could find more breast cancer, including in women with denser breast tissue -- Dr. Wood worked with Michele Duran and his on-site team to design the new digital environment. “Without digital, we believe we could not offer the same level of service and certainly not undertake the volume of patients that the move to digital provides,” he notes.

“Without digital, we believe we could not offer the same level of service and certainly not undertake the volume of patients that the move to digital provides,” Dr. Wood notes.