Debra Monticciolo and Perry Sprawls recently brought state-of-the-art breast imaging equipment and expertise to the First Teaching Hospital of Xian Medical Center in Xian, China. The effort is a huge step forward for breast imaging in China, giving women there a first-ever opportunity to get a screening mammogram, which can detect cancer at its earliest and most treatable stages.
Until now, the mammography technology in Xian could detect only large lumps that were usually advanced cases and easily palpable by hand. The new U.S.-made machine, donated by the Lorad Corp., can detect small changes in breast tissue even before there is a lump.
"This should have a direct impact on breast cancer morbidity and morality in Xian," said Monticciolo. During their week-long visit, word of their arrival spread quickly. In a matter of days, patients were lining up with requests for screening. Two cancers were diagnosed in the first two days alone. Unfortunately, they were very advanced cases, reflecting the state of mammography there.
Monticciolo and Sprawls were invited to China as part of a visiting professorship program initiated by Sprawls in 1989. Xian Medical Center is Emory's sister hospital in China. It was a coincidence that the trip was scheduled concurrently with the United Nations' conference on women's rights. But the link between increased human rights for women and improved women's healthcare was quite clear for the Emory team.
"It is a start in giving women in China the ability to take charge of their own health, " said Monticciolo. "Caught early enough, breast cancer is curable. We hope we have empowered these women to help themselves."
In special three-hour classes and at the hospital's Grand Rounds, Sprawls lectured on the physics and quality control aspects of breast imaging, while Monticciolo taught physicians how to conduct a mammogram and about the intricacies of breast disease and breast cancer. Their next step is to train physicians on image interpretation and quality control, which is always a challenge in mammography, even with the finest machines.
To achieve these goals, Monticciolo and Sprawls hope to establish a teaching fellowship at Emory in which a Xian physician would train here for three months and return to spread the knowledge to colleagues in China. Sprawls has established the Sprawls Educational Foundation, which contributes teaching materials for the project.
-- Kate Egan