Mobile Mammography
Regular mammograms are an important part of breast health care. Yet all too often busy schedules, work duties, lack of transportation and family responsibilities prevent many women from receiving this life-saving screening.
The Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center (KCBC) created the Mobile Mammography Unit in 1986 to address the difficulties that many area women face in finding access to quality mammography services. KCBC’s Mobile Unit is one of the first of its kind to have digital mammography in Tennessee.
Advantages of Digital Mammography
- Improved Contrast between dense and non-dense breast tissue
- Physician ability to manipulate the images to correct for under or over exposure without having to repeat the mammogram
- Improved image resolution provinging more precise detection of breast cancer
Easily Accessible
The Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center’s Digital Mobile Mammography Coach reaches women unable to come to KCBC’s main center. With a mobile mammography coach, KCBC is able to take digital mammography to under served populations, to working women at businesses and industrial sites, and to community and church groups throughout the area. This digital mobile coach is helping eliminate barriers by making it faster and more convenient for women to have a screening digital mammogram. These mammograms are the key to life-saving early detection of breast cancer.
To be eligible for a screening mammogram on the Mobile, Patients must meet these criteria:
- Must be 40 years of age or older
- Must not have any current breast health problems, such as lumps, redness, or discharge
- Must not have breast implants
- Must not have been diagnosed with breast cancer within the past two years
- Must not be pregnant and not have nursed in the past three months
- Must not have had a screening mammogram performed in the last 12 months
On the day of the screening, patients should do the following:
- Bring all health insurance cards, driver’s license, Medicare and Medicaid cards.
- Bring the name, address and phone number of your physician so they can receive a copy of the results.
- Bring any prior mammograms from your previous facility, if possible.
- Refrain from wearing lotion, powder or deodorant in the neck to waist area.
- For your comfort and convenience, wear an outfit that is two separate pieces (a shirt with pants/skirt).
Results
Your results will be mailed to your home address in 5-7 business days
Comprehensive Services
In the event that a Mobile Unit patient requires additional testing, the Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center has the only dedicated Clinical Breast Radiologists who utilize the diagnostic tools and procedures necessary to determine if a questioned finding on a screening mammogram is abnormal. If a cancer is found, the Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center goes one step further by providing a compete staff of breast health specialists under one roof who work as a team for your good health. Our specialists spend much needed time with the patient and her loved ones fully exploring the options prior to definitive treatment.
Technology and Accreditation
The mobile Digital Mammography Unit offers the same superior digital mammography screening equipment as the Knoxville Comprehensive Breast Center’s facilities. Both KCBC and the Mobile Digital Mammography Unit are certified by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This certification process assures that the equipment is state-of-the-art and follows a high standard of health care delivery.