Specialists Recommend Quicker Adoption, Wider Use Of New Technologies.(for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer)

2001 NOV 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The following statement was issued by the University of Southern California Health Sciences:

Modern, cutting-edge technology and techniques such as mammography, breast ultrasound and minimally invasive biopsies can improve the diagnosis and treatment of early breast cancer - but only if they are more widely used, according to an international group of cancer experts.

A panel of nearly two dozen leading surgeons, radiologists, and pathologists who work with breast cancer patients urges doctors to more speedily adopt the proven technologies and encourage insurance carriers to provide better reimbursement.

In the consensus paper - "Image-Detected Breast Cancer: State-of-the-Art Diagnosis and Treatment," published in the September 2001 issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, - the panel concludes that limited patient access to currently available techniques and treatments and inadequate reimbursement for physicians are threatening continued strides in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.

The specialists drafted their consensus paper at a breast cancer conference sponsored by the University of Southern California (USC)/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Keck School of Medicine of USC earlier in 2001.

"Over the last 20 years, we've seen major improvements in the medical community's ability to diagnose and treat patients with breast cancer," says Melvin J. Silverstein, MD, professor of surgery at the Keck School and conference chair. "However, we're now at a crossroads, and more doctors need to adopt the newer state-of-the-art technologies and techniques that until now have only been common practice in the leading institutions. Wider use of currently available techniques will further improve patient selection, reduce breast cancer recurrence, mortality and morbidity of therapy, ...