Women will be the focus of an upcoming event sponsored by Merit Health River Region.

“Pretty Woman: Healthy is Beautiful” is scheduled to run from 11:30 a.m. until 2 p.m., Sept. 26, and will include a ribbon cutting, luncheon, tours of the Women’s diagnostic area and CPR demonstrations.

“The event is going to be several things in one,” Leigh White said.

White serves as the director of marketing, corporate programs at Merit Health River Region.

A ribbon cutting for the new 3D mammography equipment and newly remodeled Women’s Diagnostic area will take place at 11:30 a.m.

The state of the art machine, White said, will change the way women experience mammogram exams.

For one, White said, “The 3D machine has higher definition.”

According to breastlink.com, traditional mammography produces just two images of each breast, a side-to-side view and a top-to-bottom view.

However, 3D mammography produces many X-ray images of the breasts from multiple angles to create a digital 3-dimensional rendering of internal breast tissue. This is beneficial, White said, especially for women with dense breast tissue, because it allows radiologists to view the breast in 1-millimeter slices rather than just the full thickness from the top and from the side.

And with this advanced technology, women may not have to undergo further diagnostic testing, White said.

Second, the 3D mammography machine is designed to make exams less painful.

“It has what they call a smart curve compression paddle and usually with a mammogram the paddle that mashes you down is a flat square kind of piece.  This one is curved. It doesn’t mean it is painless, but it does alleviate some of the pinching,” White said.

And third, the new 3D mammography, or breast tomosynthesis (tomo) can also perform biopsies.

“If you do have to have a biopsy you will no longer have to be on a table, you can do it sitting down and the tomo can do the biopsy there in the same room,” White said.

Following the ribbon cutting participants are encourage get a look at the new mammography machine as well as the newly remodeled Women’s Diagnostic area. A resource/health fair, which will be located in the Atrium of the hospital, will run simultaneously with the tours.

Also, a hands-on CPR demonstration will be offered.

“You can learn how to perform CPR,” White said, adding that most have gone away from the mouth to mouth breathing and are now focusing on doing more intense chest compressions. 

From noon to 1 p.m., a Q&A luncheon will be held in the hospital conference rooms.

“We will have a panel of providers on hand which will include Dr. W. Forrest Carson, who is a radiologist, Dr. Chris Clark, a general and thoracic surgeon and Dr. Joyce Muruti, the hospital’s newest OB-GYN,” White said.

Also cardiologist, Dr. Paul Pierce, IV, will be part of the panel along with Carrie Eure, who is a physician’s assistant to Dr. David Fagan in urology and Kim Kilpatrick, a family medicine nurse practitioner.

White said cards would be available for participants to write down any question they may want to ask the panel.

“Then we will gather them up and give them to our mistress of ceremony,” she said.

In addition, the American Cancer Society will be at the event and they are bringing a huge inflatable pink chair that women can get their picture in, White said.

A survivor table will also be set up along with a memory board.

“If someone wants to honor a person that has died of breast cancer, they can put their picture on the board,” White said.

The Pretty Woman: Healthy is Beautiful event is free, but reservations are required for the luncheon. For more information or to make reservations, call 601-883-6118 or visit the events page at RiverRegion.com.