IASO Thessalias, driven by the will to meet women’s needs provide the best possible care for them, has created the most modern Breast Center in Central Greece. The Breast Center has state-of-the-art technological equipment, as well as a large team of specialized physicians with long-standing experience in the treatment of breast conditions.
The Breast Center performs breast screening, a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic tests, all procedures related to benign or malignant breast conditions and also postoperative monitoring, mainly for breast cancer cases.
It is located in a single, autonomous and aesthetically pleasing space, with an independent secretariat and treatment offices, where it has accumulated leading Diagnostic Radiologists / Radiologists and Breast Surgeons, providing the possibility for a second medical opinion from the best doctors of all specialties in Central Greece.
With the aim of offering comprehensive, well-rounded treatment to its patients, the Breast Center is staffed with doctors of many medical specialties and with experienced nursing and paramedic personnel.
Innovative applications for the provision of health services are utilized, such as the electronic health card (EHC), an advanced software, which has the possibility of electronic recording, processing, archiving and easy access to every medical operation and imaging of patients.
It collaborates with the Medical Oncology Department, Radiation Oncology Centre and the Nuclear Medicine Department.
It is supported by a specialized Breast Oncology Council, for the detailed investigation of oncological cases that require the collaboration of all the aforementioned specialties of IASO Thessalias, which are involved in their treatment.
It has the first specialized LogiqP10 breast ultrasound machine, with significantly higher resolution and the capability of Shear Wave Elastography.
It has a state-of-the-art Digital Mammography Machine with the capability of tomosynthesis in dense breasts with minimal radiation, which also supports stereotactic biopsy and hookwire localization, with millimeter precision, to mark the possible damage.
In collaboration with specialized diagnostic radiologists the Center provides accurate diagnosis, even for very small cancers. Being able to diagnose cancers < 1cm is extremely important, as the treatment of such tumors almost always results in a cure.
Breast MRIs are performed in a 1.5 TESLA Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scanner.
The Breast Center is supported by multiple operating rooms having the capability of sentinel lymph node detection, either by radioisotopes or by exoscope & ICG (detection with indocyanine green).
The Pathology Laboratory is the pillar of the Breast Center. The preoperative diagnosis of malignancy is made by a breast needle biopsy and combined with the results from the immunohistochemical method and the molecular techniques, the next treatment steps of the patient are decided. In selected cases, the sentinel lymph node is examined, either during a fast-track biopsy or at a later time, using modern immunohistochemical investigation to detect possible metastatic diseases.
For both the lumpectomy and mastectomy specimens, the macroscopic preparation protocols as defined by the Royal College of Pathology are followed. The department is staffed with experienced clinical pathologists, specializing in breast conditions. Moreover, it frequently participates in external quality assessment schemes, both in histopathological diagnoses and immunohistochemical tests, from the world-leading Finnish organization, Labquality.
The Medical Oncology Department works closely with the Breast Center in regard to the treatment of malignancies. The latest protocols are implemented, in accordance with international guidelines, and clinical trials are carried out. The specialized experience of the Pathologists/Oncologists, as well as their special post-graduate training ensure top-quality healthcare services in the field of medical oncology.
Radiation therapy for breast cancer is performed at the Radiation Oncology Center of IASO Thessalias with the help of cutting-edge linear accelerators. The technology provided by the Center allows treatment to be performed with high accuracy and excellent dose distribution. This ensures optimum effectiveness and minimal impact on healthy tissues.
Modern surgical procedures are performed for the treatment of breast cancer, such as breast-conserving surgery, oncoplastic surgery and reconstructive surgery.
Special care is offered to patients and their families through genetic counseling and testing by specialized geneticists, who investigate the hereditary factors in breast cancer.
In particular, genetic testing is performed for BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB1, MSH2, CHEK2, TP53, ATM and XRCC2.
An assessment unit for women at high breast cancer risk
A statistical analysis unit
Notification / reminder and rescheduling services of appointments for imaging or clinical breast examination, based on last menstrual period (LMP) or other parameters.
The Breast Cancer provides effective treatment to special patient groups, such as:
Women below 35 years old who are diagnosed with cancer.
Women diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy.
Young patients that have not given birth, who are given the possibility to preserve their fertility with the aim of having a child after the end of their treatment, when their overall condition allows it.
Patients who have completed their treatment and are found able to conceive. These patients are monitored in cooperation with the Assisted Reproduction Department. Our results so far have been excellent in regard to these patient groups. In the last three years, almost 50 children have been born to a mother who had been diagnosed with breast cancer.
