Hologic - Clarity of Vision

Serving the underserved

According to Ms. Kessler, the mobile unit makes it possible to see women who normally might never have had the chance to receive a mammogram. "We are definitely seeing an underserved part of the population. Some of these women live way out; in small cabins. some of them don't have running water. It's a huge effort to get to Anchorage to get an exam.and yet, because of this unit, these women can get the latest in breast imaging technology."

“We are definitely seeing an underserved part of the population. Some of these women live way out; in small cabins. some of them don't have running water. It's a huge effort to get to Anchorage to get an exam.and yet, because of this unit, these women can get the latest in breast imaging technology."

In addition, through a combination of state and private programs that provide breast and cervical cancer screenings to the working poor, the mobile unit of Providence Imaging Center can see women who are uninsured and in danger of falling through the cracks.

"We visit sites where we see almost exclusively this population," explains Ms. Kessler. "One day, a woman who had been living in a homeless shelter came in for her screening mammogram. She would not have been able to get one if it had not been for this unit." Ms. Kessler adds, "All day, every day, patients tell me, 'Thank you so much for bringing this here. I might not have had my mammogram without PIC making is to simple."

Dr. Farleigh points out the importance of having the system on the road. "In an underserved population, you will always see a significant number of cancers in the previously unscreened. You would not have found these cancers if the unit had not been able to make its way to these sites."

Environmental challenges

Naturally, operating a traveling mammography unit in the northern most state in the union has its challenges, mostly weather related. Because of the extreme conditions often found in Alaska, the unit must be protected from the elements at all times.

Ensuring that the digital detector on the Selenia system does not get too hot or too cold is the work of two on board diesel generators operating the heating units for the exam area. "During one trip out to Glenallen," recalls Ms. Kessler, "the temperature dipped to - 30° F. I had the back up generator on the whole drive to and from Glenallen to keep the exam area temperature stable. The heaters kept everything nice and toasty."

Hope for the future

The new mobile mammography coach means that the Imaging Center can once again return to the sites and locations that had been previously discontinued due to the unreliability of a very old mammography unit. Says Ms. Kessler, "Because of the condition of the old system, we had tapered off the mobile services, and reduced the schedule of on site visits. Now that we have the new system.our goal is to have the unit out and running five days a week, year round."

For the women of the Anchorage area, that's very good news.