Health and Community Services
March 10, 2010
New Digital
Mammography Units Enhance Cancer Detection
Early cancer detection
for residents in Newfoundland and Labrador has been
significantly enhanced with the installment of new
digital mammography units in communities across the
province. The Honourable Jerome Kennedy, Minister of
Health and Community Services, was joined by Vickie
Kaminski, President and CEO of Eastern Health, at the
Breast Screening Centre in St. John's today where they
viewed one of the units that has been recently
installed.
"I am pleased today to update residents of the province
on our commitment in Budget 2009 to provide a full suite
of digital mammography units in the province," said
Minister Kennedy. "Digital mammography units provide the
best imaging technology available for breast cancer
screening. This technology allows the mammogram to be
enlarged or magnified to provide the best quality
picture and allows images to be electronically filed and
stored where they can be accessed in seconds."
The Provincial Government has invested $10.9 million for
the purchase of 12 new mammography units, 11 of which
have been installed in health care facilities in
Carbonear, Burin, Clarenville, Corner Brook,
Stephenville, Happy Valley-Goose Bay and Labrador City,
as well as the Breast Screening Centres in Corner Brook
and St. John's. An additional mammography unit will be
installed and operational at the Curtis Memorial
Hospital in St. Anthony in November 2010, once
renovations to that facility are complete. These units
complement those already in place in St. John's, Gander
and Grand Falls-Windsor, and brings the total number of
digital mammography units in the province to 16.
"The benefit of breast screening is early detection of
breast cancer," said Ms. Kaminski. "Breast screening
picks up very small, early stage breast cancer. The use
of digital mammography improves our ability to deliver
better treatment options, better outcomes and more
integrated breast health care for women."
"Cancer touches the lives of so many individuals and
families in our province, and we are committed to
investing significantly in high-quality cancer care
services so that residents in need have access to these
services from anywhere in the province," said Minister
Kennedy. "These new units will further enhance the
technologies and therapies we currently have in place
for cancer diagnosis and care."
Furthering its commitment to enhance the quality of
programs and services in the health care system, the
Provincial Government has invested approximately $28
million in cancer prevention and treatment in the last
couple of years. This includes $13.5 million to purchase
an array of new medical equipment such as MRI and CT
scanners to treat cancer and other diseases, $10.6
million to increase capacity for radiation treatment in
the province, $2.4 million for the expansion of the Dr.
H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre, and $1.5 million to
update screening technology and make the cervical
screening program available province-wide.
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2010 03 10
10:45 a.m.