The one stop Breast Care Unit for Buckinghamshire needs a biopsy guidance system to enable more targeted biopsies to be undertaken using 3D technology, and increase capacity. An X ray guided system and lateral arm accessory will improve how tissue is obtained for diagnosis. This one stop breast diagnostic and treatment service supports 23,000 patients each year of which 1,000 patients will need X ray guided biopsy having been recalled from routine screening or are new symptomatic cases.

3D technology enables accurate placement of the biopsy needle; the lateral arm allows biopsies on almost every area of the breast, increasing the chance of getting an accurate diagnosis. X-ray guidance means more tissue can be obtained at the time of biopsy, so pathology can be reported earlier. The procedure is more comfortable for the patient and reduces the ‘time to first offered treatment’ period from three weeks to one week, minimising patient anxiety.