GE Healthcare launches global initiative on 10th anniversary of digital mammography
12 October 2009
To commemorate the tenth anniversary of digital mammography and its long standing commitment to fighting breast cancer, GE Healthcare has created a digital wall of personal stories from those whose lives have been touched by breast cancer, as well as doctors, scientists and fundraisers who work tirelessly against the disease.
Similar to digital photography, digital mammography replaces the film used in traditional mammography with digital files viewed and stored on computers.
In addition to being the tenth anniversary of digital mammography, a technology introduced by GE Healthcare in 1999, this October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Around 30 patients, survivors, fundraisers and medical professionals from around the world are the foundation of the first phase of the GE Healthcare’s wall. The company hopes that the wall will grow rapidly and become a global platform for survivors, innovators and charities to share their stories, provide additional information on technology milestones and successes and empower others impacted by breast cancer.
“Our initiative shows that breast cancer is indiscriminate. It affects women, and also men, irrespective of their age, nationality and religion. We want people to get involved and share their story. Today, they can do that by clicking the “submit your story” icon on the site and share their experience, knowledge and hope with others,” said Wendy Harris, Strategic Marketing Leader, Women’s Health at GE Healthcare.
“I hope to see it grow rapidly in size to become a definitive hub for empowering stories; how survivors have fought and overcome the disease, as well as profiling the doctors, and scientists who are working tirelessly – often behind the scenes,” continued Harris.
In addition to this initiative, GE Healthcare is participating in several breast cancer awareness events around the globe during the month of October. Amongst others, on October 4, 2009, GE Healthcare France joined forces with the Odyssea breast cancer race in Paris to educate the general public on the disease and solutions where all funds raised are being given in its entirety to the Institute Gustave- Roussy (IGR) to conduct research.
In China, the Company is participating in a three year project in Deyang, a city in the earthquake-stricken Sichuan province, to establish a regional breast-cancer screening network to increase the access to breast cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment, including remote diagnosis for more rural areas. GE Healthcare also recently entered into a research and development program to advance technologies for the early detection of breast cancer with the Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP).
About GE Healthcare's pioneering development of advanced breast-imaging technologies
GE Healthcare has been a leader in the field of breast cancer detection through mammography devices since the 1960s. Today there are approximately 17,700 GE Healthcare mammography systems in use worldwide.
GE Healthcare was the first company to introduce full-field digital mammography (FFDM) in 1999. GE Healthcare estimates that since then, more than 40 million examinations have been performed with its diagnostic imaging technologies worldwide.
The company has spent 13 years and more than $100 million developing the full-field digital mammography technology, GE Healthcare Senographe systems, and continues to invest heavily in new cutting-edge technologies to detect the pathology before the onset.
Approximately 3700 GE Healthcare Senographe digital systems are currently being used in the world — more than 90% of them still work with their original detector.
In August this year, healthcare technology research organization KLAS ranked GE Healthcare’s Senographe DS as the best digital mammography system on the US market today, based on a survey of healthcare providers.
Through its own research as well as partnerships with other industry innovators, GE Healthcare is continuing to develop advanced technologies that could help improve detection and reduce unnecessary biopsies in the future, including a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system specifically designed for breast imaging and tomosynthesis — currently under clinical investigation — which generates three-dimensional images.
1. Visit the digital wall of personal breast cancer stories at www.breastcanceremotion.gehealthcare.com
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