GE HealthCare to Showcase Comprehensive Approach to Personalized Breast Cancer Care and Dense Breast Imaging at SBI 2023

Full suite of solutions improve the patient experience and help address key challenges across the care continuum in detection, diagnosis and treatment planning for women with dense breast tissue

CHICAGO – GE HealthCare (Nasdaq: GEHC), a leader in breast health technology and diagnostics, joins the global breast imaging community at the 2023 Society of Breast Imaging Symposium to share its portfolio of solutions designed to provide a comprehensive approach to advancing women’s health and personalized breast cancer care for all patients, including women with dense breast tissue.

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women, with one in eight facing diagnosis in their lifetime.[1] Regular screening mammograms are critical for early detection and can help assess breast density, but their effectiveness is reduced in women with dense breast tissue.[2] Breast density reflects to the amount of fibrous and glandular tissue in the breast compared to the amount of fatty tissue, with dense breast tissue having a higher proportion of fibroglandular tissue than fatty tissue.[3] Dense breast tissue is considered common but women with dense breasts may be four to six times more likely to get breast cancer.[4] Additionally, it can make detection of cancer more challenging - requiring patients to seek additional supplementary screening. While breast density awareness and notification varies globally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently announced updates to the Mammography Quality Standards Act (MQSA) that will put a national breast density reporting standard into place in 2024.

To help elevate breast care for women with dense breasts, as well as provide more personalized breast care to a broad and diverse population, GE HealthCare offers a comprehensive portfolio of breast imaging technologies, including the Senographe Pristina, a mammography system designed to provide a better patient experience,[5] and Invenia ABUS, the first FDA-approved automated breast ultrasound supplemental screening technology specifically designed for detecting cancer in dense breast.

“In the fight against breast cancer, knowing personal risk factors - like breast density - matters. At GE HealthCare, we work closely with clinicians to understand the unique needs of the patients they serve. As requirements continue to evolve to help improve breast cancer outcomes, our diverse portfolio offers personalized breast care solutions along every step of the patient journey,” said Jyoti Gera, General Manager for Radiology and Primary Care, Ultrasound, GE HealthCare. “This portfolio includes Invenia ABUS, an innovative and patient-friendly ultrasound technology that helps address the challenge of detecting cancer in dense breasts to help patients get the answers they deserve in the face of this difficult diagnosis.”

With approximately 71 percent of all breast cancer occurring in women with dense breasts,[6] detecting cancer at an early stage has important prognostic implications and can help reduce the cost of care.[7] When used in addition to mammography, Invenia ABUS can improve breast cancer detection by 35.7 percent over mammography alone.[8]

When a patient’s result remains inconclusive after screening, GE HealthCare’s SenoBright HD Contrast Enhanced Mammography (CEM) can provide immediate follow-up when in search for a definitive answer. CEM combines mammography and iodinated contrast media to highlight areas of unusual blood-flow patterns that may indicate malignancy - helping reduce the masking effect of fibroglandular breast tissue and increase the clarity of lesions.[9] [10] If medical indications recommend pathology, the industry’s first biopsy under contrast with Serena Bright can also be performed from first image to last image within fifteen minutes.[11]

To help further advance breast cancer care, GE HealthCare’s latest Pristina Bright offering provides comprehensive support to healthcare providers starting a new contrast program. Pristina Bright combines SenoBright HD, Pristina Serena, and Serena Bright with an education program that includes dedicated on-site support, CME accredited self-assessment, as well as access to the users’ club where providers will be able to share with experts around the globe and leverage resources needed to market their facility among referring doctors and patients.

These technologies are also part of GE HealthCare’s One-Stop Clinic for Breast solution that is redefining the patient experience by accelerating care from screening to diagnosis and treatment planning through a coordinated and personalized patient journey in one place, with one multidisciplinary cancer care team, from months to hours.

In addition to these offerings and in continued pursuit of improving breast cancer outcomes, GE HealthCare has also joined the Contrast Enhanced Mammography Imaging Screening Trial [12] in collaboration with the American College of Radiology (ACR) and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) to gain an increased understanding of the effectiveness of CEM in the detection of breast cancer in dense breasts. The study recently reached another significant milestone [13] with the opening of the first site and enrollment of first participants at Carolina Breast Imaging Specialists (CBIS) in the United States.

“Dense breast tissue is not only a risk factor, but also makes it increasingly difficult to identify breast cancer. The FDA’s recent announcement requiring a single national “dense breast” reporting standard after years of advocacy is a win for patients, as well as providers, in the fight against breast cancer,” said Jyoti Gupta, PhD – President & CEO for Women’s Health and X-ray at GE HealthCare. “Providing women with this information offers the potential for early diagnosis and empowers women with dense breasts to make informed and personalized decisions about their breast health through supplemental imaging, like contrast-enhanced mammography. I’m excited to see our Senographe Pristina mammography system, SenoBright HD CEM technology and contrast media from our Pharmaceutical Diagnostics segment being used to further evaluate the clinical benefits of CEM as part of our efforts to improve breast cancer outcomes.”

Visit GE HealthCare at Booth 301 to learn more, including an interactive digital experience as well as an opportunity to participate in an immersive patient experience with the help of augmented reality.

More information can also be found online here.