Dana-Farber adds mammography suite at Whittier Street Health Center

Building on their joint commitment to caring for area residents, Dana-Farber has opened a mammography suite within the Whittier Street Health Center, located in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood.

The suite, open Tuesday through Thursday and situated on the clinic's first floor, is staffed with skilled, registered mammography technologists and additional members of the care team focused on fighting health care disparities. Scheduled and same-day appointments are available. Prior to the opening of the mammography suite, women who received their medical care at Whittier Street Health Center had screenings on Dana-Farber's Mammography Van during its monthly visits to the center.

By providing an on-site screening service, the Dana-Farber mammography imaging team estimates that they will be able to offer twice as many mammography screenings as they were able to with the mammography van. In addition, the suite will free up more time for the mammography van to visit other areas of need throughout Boston and beyond. The suite uses digital mammography imaging, which is interpreted by board-certified radiologists with extensive experience in mammography.

"The primary care physician will provide results to the patient, and will help the patient decide what to do next — including facilitating diagnostic follow-up mammography services and, if needed, treatment at Dana-Farber," says Maureen Akisik, RT, supervisor, Breast Imaging at Dana-Farber.

"The Whittier Street facility enables us to serve more women in the community and provide lifesaving education, screening, and support services," adds Jack Meyer, MD, director of Breast Imaging at Dana-Farber.

"At Whittier, our staff and community partners are deeply committed to providing optimal care to members of the community, especially those in underserved and minority communities," says Frederica M. Williams, president and CEO of Whittier Street Health Center. "With every new program added to our wealth of services, we are getting that much closer to eliminating health disparities, an ultimate goal at Whittier. The opening of the Dana-Farber mammography suite is yet another example of that commitment. We are proud to partner with one of the world's leading organizations in conquering cancer. Together, we look forward to helping as many women in the community as possible get the comprehensive screening and access to cancer care they need."

Clinic leaders are currently recruiting for a breast health educator, who will work with patients to increase knowledge of breast health. Bilingual patient navigators will help patients for whom English is a second language.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Mammography possesses a valid license and certificate of inspection issued by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.