As Breast Care Coordinator in the Radiology Department at Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, McGonigal reassures women who have an abnormal mammogram, a family history of breast cancer or a palpable mass and are nervous about having a mammogram. She remains available to answer questions, stays by the patient's side during a biopsy and, if the diagnosis is cancer, supports her through treatment at Pottstown Memorial Regional Cancer Center, an affiliate of the nationally renowned Fox Chase Cancer Center.

If a mammogram is abnormal, McGonigal, a registered nurse, will explain why additional tests are needed. If a breast biopsy is recommended, she sends the report to the referring physician within 24 hours, assists in contacting a breast surgeon to conduct the biopsy and will even stay with women during the test.

PMMC offers two common biopsy procedures other than surgery, she explains. In the stereotactic and Mammotome biopsies, a probe is inserted (using local anesthesia) in a small incision in the skin of the breast. "These tests are vital in the fight against breast cancer, and offer patients convenient alternatives to facilities that perform biopsies in the operating room," says McGonigal.

McGonigal assures patients that 80 percent of biopsies do not detect cancer. "I let them know that, if it is cancer, they have a relationship with somebody at the hospital who can help them through the diagnosis and treatment... I'll do whatever a patient needs me to do. "I am the go-to person, a resource for local women. I work to make sure it all goes smoothly for the patient and to ease their fears."

For more information on cancer services at PMMC, call 610-327-7555 or visit our website, www.pottstownmemorial.com. Go to the Discovery Hospital link for more information on breast cancer.