Biopsy Technique Gaining Support : Medicine: Painless needle procedure, pioneered in part at Simi Valley Hospital breast center, is cheaper than surgical method.

Julie Steiner, 35, had a lump in her left breast tested for cancer last month. She did not have to take any time off from her job in Simi Valley for the painless procedure that took about an hour and left only a tiny red line on her skin.

Steiner’s stepmother had the same test years ago, “the old-fashioned way,” Steiner said. That surgical procedure left scars, took several days for recovery and cost more than twice as much.

The new needle core biopsy technique, pioneered in part at Simi Valley Hospital’s Nancy Reagan Breast Center, is quickly catching on in Ventura County.

A recently published study that included 203 cases from Simi Valley Hospital found that the needle core biopsy technique Steiner underwent is as reliable as the traditional invasive surgical biopsy method.

In addition to Simi Valley Hospital, the procedure is also available at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura and at independent diagnostic centers in Ventura and Thousand Oaks.

But needle core biopsies are still unavailable in many areas of the country, and doctors say the technique, which has been done locally since 1991, is meeting some local resistance.

“There’s no question it’s under-utilized right now, but that’s mostly because it’s new,” said Dr. Judy Dean, a radiologist who began performing needle core biopsies in November at Medical Diagnostic Imaging in Thousand Oaks. “A lot of physicians even are not aware of the technique.”

Dean said many doctors refer women who may have breast cancer directly to surgeons. The surgeons, she said, are leery about losing biopsy business to radiologists.

Jo Lynn Nelson, technical director of the Nancy Reagan Breast Center, said 15 to 20 of the $1,000 operations are conducted at the center each month. A surgical biopsy can cost from $2,500 to $4,000, she said.

The technique involves using X-rays or ultrasound to guide a needle, which extracts a small tissue sample from the breast.

Marilyn Hall, 43, a Simi Valley antique dealer, said the needle core biopsy she had in November was painless.

“I heard the noise and was waiting to feel some discomfort, and I did not feel a thing,” said Hall, who went to see “The Lion King” at a movie theater immediately after the procedure.

“It was really a walk in the park,” Hall said. “If you have to have one, that’s the way to go.”

The tissue samples taken from Hall and Steiner both proved non-cancerous. But the women said the anxiety they endured before the test results came back was bad enough.

Having to undergo surgery would have been an added burden, they said. Steiner’s stepmother, now in her 70s, agreed, Steiner said. She added that her stepmother was pleased to learn her stepdaughter had a better option.

“She thought that was wonderful,” Steiner said.