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Women’s Imaging services at Loma Linda University Health are aimed at diagnosing a wide range of female medical conditions, including breast cancer, abdominal and pelvic disorders such as pain or abnormal bleeding and osteoporosis. Our experts use state-of-the-art technologies to detect a variety of female health problems earlier and more accurately. The earlier women's health problems are diagnosed, the better they will respond to treatment, and the more likely women will achieve full recovery.
Why Choose Loma Linda University Health Women's Imaging Center
How do you choose a place to have your mammograms and other imaging exams done, a place that you and your doctor can trust and have confidence in? Let us help you. Our Women’s Imaging Center is the first facility in the Inland Empire to offer non-invasive breast MRIs to diagnose and biopsy breast diseases and breast cancer. We are known for our success in using interventional radiology during Uterine Artery Embolization to detect and destroy uterine fibroids.
Our Services
The Women’s Imaging Center performs a full range of women’s diagnostic services with professional expertise and advanced technologies. Along with digital mammography, we now offer the newest technology, 3-D or tomosynthesis, which increases cancer detection and reduces false positives. In addition, Breast MRI scans on a dedicated MRI scanner, ultrasound exams, minimally invasive breast biopsies, and bone density exams are done, all part of the comprehensive women’s services at Loma Linda University Health.
Breast health is a vital part of maintaining a woman's overall wellbeing. While breast health depends on lifestyle habits, such as eating healthy and exercising regularly, in many cases, family history and genetic abnormalities can negatively affect breast health.
Each year, nearly 190,000 American women are diagnosed with breast cancer. Over 41,000 women die from this condition annually. Despite the shocking nature of these statistics, the good news is that breast cancer is highly treatable, as long as the condition is diagnosed and treated in earlier stages.
Women's Imaging and Breast Health
While our internationally acclaimed Women’s Imaging services can help detect a number of conditions affecting women, diagnosing breast health issues is among our specialties. Our Breast Health Center offers the most advanced technological capabilities in the Inland Empire, enabling us to detect breast abnormalities earlier and more accurately.
At Loma Linda University Health, our compassionate specialists are highly trained to use the most cutting-edge breast imaging techniques. Studies are read by an expert radiologist dedicated solely to breast imaging procedures. And our Breast Health Navigator, a registered nurse, helps newly diagnosed women get into treatment and recovery as quickly as possible. In addition to diagnostics, the Breast Health Center offers education and breast cancer awareness programs. A second-opinion service can help assess the presence and extent of breast disease.
Our goal is to help women get the best possible treatment for their breast health issues so they can begin recovering and regain their wellbeing. Our skill and experience in administering breast imaging services attests to our dedication to diagnosing breast health issues in their early stages so that women:
- Can start an effective treatment program as soon as possible
- Prevent further health complications from developing
- Have the best chances for full recovery
In most cases, the earlier breast health complications are detected and treated, the better they will respond to treatments. In fact, studies show that women diagnosed with breast cancer in earlier stages are two to five times more likely to survive their malignancy than women diagnosed in a later stage of breast cancer.
Conditions Diagnosed via Breast Imaging
The expert radiologists at LLUMC use various breast imaging technologies to diagnose a number of breast health complications, including but are not limited to:
- Breast cancer
- Breast fat necrosis – damaged fatty tissues in the breast
- Breast thrombophlebitis – swelling of the breast's blood vessels
- Fibrocystic disease – a condition in which cysts develop in the breast tissues and cause tenderness, pain and / or inflammation
- Mastalgia or general breast pain – While mastalgia can arise due to PMS or pregnancy, in some cases, it indicates the presence of a more serious underlying condition
- Mastitis – an infection of the milk ducts
Our Breast Imaging Services
The precise series of breast imaging tests we use will depend on a woman's age, medical history and symptoms, including the types and severity of symptoms experienced. After gathering a woman's medical history and giving her a thorough physical exam, our skilled physicians and technicians may then perform any combination of the following breast imaging tests:
- CT scans
- Digital and / or traditional mammography
- Minimally invasive breast biopsy
- MRIs
- Ultrasounds
At Loma Linda University Health, specialists detect osteoporosis using DXA scans which measure bone density. DXA uses low energy X-rays to measure body composition and bone mineral density. This simple, painless procedure takes only 20 minutes to perform. Our experts may use a combination of bone imaging tests, including:
- CT scans
- Dual X-Ray Absorptiometry (DXA or DEXA) – the use of two x-ray beams
- Ultrasounds
Additional women's diagnostic studies include:
- Pelvic and abdominal ultrasound
- Interventional radiology, including Uterine Artery Embolization for the treatment of uterine fibroids
