Breast cancer outreach is key under new director
 
Dr. Patricia Joseph has been in private practice her entire career, but when the opportunity arose to become director of breast and women”™s health prevention services at Nyack Hospital”™s Cancer Care Center, it was an offer she couldn”™t refuse.
Joseph toured the center and hospital with state Sen. Thomas Morahan June 5. Morahan has been successful in getting more than $1 million in aid for cancer treatment and equipment for the southern Rockland County hospital. A healthy portion of that funding went to help the hospital buy a $1.5 million GE digital mammography machine.
“You can”™t compare digital to analog,” said Joseph. “It”™s unbelievable ”“ a clear, concise picture to help us pinpoint any problems that might have gone undetected with the older technology.”
Morahan has had his own brush with cancer, both personally and in his family, so he knows the devastation the disease brings to a family”™s mental, physical and financial resources.
“Dr. Joseph is a welcome addition to the hospital”™s oncology team,” he said. “We”™re very lucky to have her here.”
Joseph said her goal is to create more community outreach, particularly in Rockland”™s large Haitian community, a group at high risk of breast cancer. She said, “People are afraid to come in, saying it might hurt, but screening helps save so many lives. A little pressure for a few minutes can save your life. It”™s more than worth it to come in and take the test.”
Even with better scans, Joseph has seen a higher incidence of patients requesting mastectomies over the past few years. “Patients are nervous,” said Joseph, “and would rather not take a chance. We offer all options to patients. They make the decision as far as what they think is what is best for them; many feel would rather play it safe than have a lumpectomy and reconstructive surgery. You can”™t choose for the patient. They make the choice, and that seems to be the prevailing choice.”
Nyack”™s Cancer Care Center has performed 13,000 breast cancer procedures over the past 18 months and seen nearly 20,000 patients for routine checkups in that same time. For Joseph, whose entire career has strictly focused on breast health, it”™s a challenge she not only welcomes but is eager to tackle. “This is a real opportunity to create community outreach and to bring breast cancer awareness to many more people. I”™m looking forward to getting the word out, especially bringing women in for screenings. No one has to go without a mammography. They are truly a life saver.”