Breast Health Center · Conway Medical Center

The Most Important Selfie You’ll Take

You can snap a photo in no time and now getting mammograms are just as easy. 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime and early detection and access to superior care is key to saving a life. So why wait to take the most important selfie of your life?

Conway Medical Center is proudly using 3-D mammography technology. In fact, we were the first facility in Horry County to offer this state-of-the-art screening process. We’ve made 3-D mammograms available to every patient. Why? Because this advanced technology helps us find more small abnormalities that may not be visible in standard 2-D mammograms. This means improved detection, increased comfort, and fewer false alarms for for you.

Say “Yes” to your annual mammogram

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3D Mammograms & Imaging for Early Detection

At CMC, we want all women to benefit from the most sophisticated breast care available. That is why CMC is one of the first hospitals in the region to offer screening 3-D mammograms without a physician’s order. Our advanced imaging technology coupled with our compassionate care makes CMC’s Breast Health Center the right choice for you.

Conway Medical Center is also bringing the most mammograms to a community or business near you! Our mobile 3D mammography center utilizes the same imaging and 3D digital tomosynthesis technology as in our Imaging Center. The process is quick and easy for those with time constraints or transportation issues with making appointments.

CMC is a participating provider in BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Routine Mammography Network. In addition, this life-saving screening is also available to all State Health Plan members.

If you are underinsured or uninsured, the CMC Foundation may be able to help with financial assistance. Please call 843-347-8170 to inquire about available assistance.

Your Expert Women's Breast Health Care Team

Because breast health is a highly specialized field, every member of the Breast Health Center’s team is highly trained and our specialists include a reconstructive surgeon, medical oncologist, and pathologist as well as board certified radiologists, board certified surgeons who are members of the American Society of Breast Surgeons, nationally registered and state certified technologists, and experienced support staff.

Our team has achieved certification from the Quality Management System and adheres to the highest standards for its clinical practices and patient safety. In addition to clinical strengths, our team is well known for our customer service and attention to details. We focus on patient support and education. Our goal is to provide timely information and results to reduce the sleepless nights of anxious patients.

Breast Health Navigator
We understand the diagnostic process can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing. Our Breast Health Navigator assists you through your journey. If a routine mammogram suggests additional imaging is necessary, our Breast Health Navigator will help you gain a better understanding about the imaging process and support you during this time. Because education remains so important in making decisions, our Breast Health Navigator serves as an important resource for you.

CMC’s Breast Health Navigator serves as a consistent contact person, advocate, and guide for you and your families. From biopsies to surgical intervention, medical oncology, radiation therapy and other services, our Breast Health Navigator is there to provide clinical expertise and support. Our Breast Health Navigator also helps you make appointments, schedule procedures, and connect all the dots of your care.

Even after you have been diagnosed and treated for breast cancer, the Breast Health Navigator is available to assist and support you with future check-ups and imaging services. Through the years, you’ll be supported just as you were in the very beginning.
Full Spectrum of Care
A team approach to breast cancer has become a standard throughout the United States as well as in our practice. Our multidisciplinary team consists of a team of radiologist, breast surgeons, medical oncologist, radiation oncologists, pathologists, breast navigators, nurses and more.

The CMC Center for Breast Health is a collaboration between breast care professionals from the following partners:

Associates in Surgery

Carolina Coastal Plastic Surgery

Carolina Radiology

Carolina Regional Cancer Center

Coastal Cancer Center

Modalities:

Diagnostic Imaging/Radiology

Surgery

Medical Oncology

Radiation Oncology

Plastic/Reconstructive Surgery

Pathology
Preparing For Your Appointment
Preparation

To best prepare for your mammogram, please review the following:

On the day of your appointment, please do not use any body deodorants, body powder or perfume. You can bring your deodorant with you and apply it after your mammogram is complete.

For your mammogram, wear a two-piece outfit, as you will be asked to undress from the waist up.

If you have had a previous mammogram at another facility, please pick up the mammogram films or CD and bring them on the day of your appointment.

Limiting caffeine intake for up to two weeks prior to your mammogram may decrease your discomfort as caffeine causes the breasts to be tender.

Your Appointment

Bring your doctor’s order with you, if you have one. You do not need a doctor’s order for a screening mammogram.

Bring proof of insurance coverage and picture identification.

Please arrive at least 20 minutes prior to appointment time for registration.

Some exams require a doctor’s order. Please review the following to determine if you need an order. Contact your doctor’s office if it is determined that you do.

An exam can be scheduled with or without a doctor’s order for an Annual Screening Mammogram if:

You have no personal history of breast cancer

You have no current breast problems or symptoms

A doctor’s order is required when:

You are having a follow up exam performed

You have a personal history of breast cancer

You have any current breast problems or symptoms
Importance of Imaging & Mammography Records
Have you had a mammogram at another facility?

If you have had mammograms at another facility, it is recommended to contact that facility and request images be sent to the location of your upcoming appointment.

Patients with prior imaging have a more accurate interpretation and faster results, which means less anxiety.

Why it is important to obtain prior images?

Looking for Change/stability

When viewing a mammogram image, radiologists evaluate the breast tissue to determine whether every spot or dot is a natural part of the breast tissue/density, benign findings such as cysts, fibrocystic tissue, or lymph nodes or something that has recently developed that could be cancer.

If an area in your breast has changed significantly in the past year, it may be something the radiologist will want to take a closer look at. Alternatively, if a questionable area is seen, but has been present and stable over years, that can indicate a benign process that does not require additional workup

Screening mammograms will be read once priors are received – this will cause a delay in getting your results.

Preventing Duplicate Work /Reduce False Positives

If you have had mammograms done in the past, a previous radiologist may have marked areas of your breasts that look suspicious, only to conclude that the area is normal and benign. Without prior images, the current radiologist may recommend testing on the same area which could result in unnecessary exams and anxiously waiting days or weeks for additional testing.

Prior Images are REQUIRED in advance for Diagnostic Mammograms

If you are scheduled for a diagnostic mammogram (as a follow-up to an inconclusive screening, or patients who are experiencing breast symptoms such as lump, dimpling, nipple inversion or discharge, consistent focal pain, etc, or following up from a recent cancer diagnosis) your prior images are required for direct comparison that is evaluated at the time of the exam.

This helps determine the best plan of action, specifically designed for you and your medical history

Obtaining Prior Records

CD of images needs to be received prior to the appointment in order to allow time for uploading. Contact the facility/ imaging center/hospital and request your prior mammograms. You can usually have them mailed to you or directly to us at: (any questions about this process can be directed to medical records 843-347-8113/radiology file room 843-347-8308.

Conway Medical Center Imaging Center – Attn: Mammography

300 Singleton Ridge Road- Conway, SC 26526
Important Phone Numbers

Our Services

The CMC Breast Health Center offers women quality imaging services and advanced technology close to home for the convenience they need and deserve. Our 3D mammography services capture clear images of the breast tissue on high-resolution computer monitors looking for any lesions or abnormalities. If additional imaging is needed, our radiologist can utilize breast ultrasound or breast MRI imaging to identify tiny lesions at the earliest stages of development. If cancer is suspected, radiologists and surgeons will review images to offer the most efficient biopsy to determine if cancer cells are present.

3D Mammography
Conway Medical Center is the first facility in Horry County to offer 3D mammography. Three-dimensional mammography, also called digital breast tomosynthesis, is a revolutionary screening and diagnostic process in which multiple x-rays of the breast are taken at different angles which the computer then forms into a 3D image. This state-of-the-art technology allows our radiologists to view breast tissue as a whole or one layer at a time – discovering more details with greater clarity and accuracy. Early detection is the key to fighting breast cancer, and using 3D mammography technology is just another way CMC is bringing better health to life.
Breast Ultrasound
Breast MRI
Breast MRI uses Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to examine breast tissue without exposing patients to ionizing radiation. This process takes hundreds of images of the breast at many different angles and can successfully image dense breast tissue. In some cases, Breast MRI detects small lesions that can be missed my mammography or ultrasound imaging. Breast MRI may be used in the following cases:

Evaluation of patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer

Screening of high risk patients

Evaluation of saline/silicone implants

Evaluation of response to neo-adjuvant chemotherapy

Evaluation of post-operative breast cancer patients

Advanced screening in conjunction with mammogram, breast ultrasound and clinical findings

Evaluation for residual or recurrent disease
Cyst Aspiration
Image-Guided Breast Biopsy
Breast biopsies are performed when suspicious tissue is seen or felt to determine if the tissue is cancerous. An image-guided breast biopsy is a non-surgical procedure where a special automated needle is used to remove a small amount of tissue from the abnormal area. This tissue is then sent to a pathologist for evaluation. We offer ultrasound-guided breast biopsy and stereotactic breast biopsy.
Ultrasound-Guided Breast Biopsy
Stereotactic Breast Biopsy
Stereotactic Breast Biopsy

A stereotactic breast biopsy uses x-rays to locate breast abnormalities. This minimally-invasive procedure compresses the breast between two plates as X-rays (mammograms) are taken to produce stereo images — images of the same area from different angles — to determine the exact location for the biopsy. A sample of breast tissue in the area of concern is then removed.
Lesion Localization
Needle Localization
Radioactive Seed Localization
Radioactive Seed Localization

Radioactive Seed Localization (RSL) may be used on patients needing breast cancer surgery. In this process, a thin needle is used to place a tiny, low-energy radioactive seed directly on the cancerous lump to help surgeons precisely locate and remove breast tumors during a lumpectomy.

This procedure provides increased accuracy and more patient comfort as compared to the wire-location procedure (WLP). CMC is the first facility in the state of South Carolina to offer this procedure.

Education & Support

The CMC Breast Health Center offers continuing education and support for newly diagnosed patients, cancer survivors, and their families through traditional support group settings, social events, educational sessions with guest speakers, wellness activities, and so much more. We believe an educated patient with a support system is an empowered patient and we strive to share information and awareness to help our patients reach their maximum potential.

New Diagnosis Guidance
A cancer diagnosis can be overwhelming and bring tremendous stress and anxiety. The team at the Center for Breast Health is committed to providing our patients and their families the education and support they need. We offer a private session to any newly diagnosed patient to answer any questions they may have regarding breast cancer, treatment options and possible side effects, nutrition and lifestyle changes. Sessions are free. To request a session, please call 843-234-7309.
Breast Cancer Support Group
The CMC Breast Health Center is here for area breast cancer survivors. We offer monthly support group meetings and educational sessions with guest speakers to help you overcome the many issues that you may experience after a diagnosis of breast cancer. Meetings are typically held the second Tuesday of each month from 5:30-7 p.m. in the CMC Private Dining Room located in the main hospital at 300 Singleton Ridge Road in Conway. To register or for more information, please call 843-234-7309 or register online.

Best Cancer Risk Factors

The biggest risk factors for getting breast cancer are being female and getting older – two factors that are not controllable. However, there are risk factors you can control. Below are the two types of risk factors for developing breast cancer – controllable and uncontrollable.

Controllable Risk Factors

Smoking
Drinking more than one alcoholic beverage per day
Being overweight
Lack of exercise
Use of hormone replacement drugs

Uncontrollable Risk Factors

Getting older
Family history of breast cancer
History of breast disease
Not having children or having your first child after 30
Having your first menstrual cycle before age 12

Other Services

CMC Women’s Health

Advanced Technology on Wheels

Our state-of-the-art mobile mammography unit features:

The latest 3D digital tomosynthesis technology
Superior imaging for early detection of breast cancer
Quick, comfortable screening experience
Private, welcoming environment
Staffed by experienced, compassionate technologists

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Mobile Mammography Center