UH Breast Health Team Update: Presentations and Accolades

UH Seidman Cancer Center Newsletter | August 2019

UH Breast Surgeons Present at the American Society of Breast Surgeons 20th Annual Meeting

On May 3, Drs. Megan Miller, Jill Dietz, and colleagues presented their work “Hospital system rollout and initial experience with stainless steel magnetized seeds for breast and lymph node localization” on a novel breast surgery technique that replaces traditional wire localization. In over 800 cases, the “Magseed” accurately identified the lesion for surgical removal, and its placement yielded few complications. Further study is underway to evaluate procedural cost and efficacy, and to assess patient and health system outcomes with Magseed vs. wire localization for breast surgery. Session participants were eager to implement this procedure in their own practice.

Dr. Dietz also presented “Lesion Localization Strategies: Beyond the Wire” during the general session on May 4, outlining techniques for intraoperative breast lesion identification. This review highlighted the benefits of wireless localization, including radiology and operating room efficiency, cost savings, and improvements in patient experience.

During the awards presentation that evening, Dr. Dietz was announced as President of the Society. We extend our most sincere congratulations to her and look forward to her leadership in this important role.

Faculty Development Course on Feedback Skills at Association for Surgical Education Annual Meeting 2019

Megan Miller, MD, a breast surgical oncologist and surgical educator, presented a pre-meeting course entitled “Providing Effective Verbal Feedback to Trainees” on April 24, at the Association for Surgical Education Annual Meeting in Chicago, Ill. The half-day session highlighted feedback strategies to improve interactions between faculty and trainees, and included simulated scenarios in which participants practiced their new skills. Dr. Miller, chair of the Association’s Graduate Surgical Education Committee, is publishing the curriculum to encourage colleagues to adopt feedback strategies and implement the workshop at other institutions for faculty development.

Breast Surgeons win Research Award at Cleveland Surgical Society May 2019 

Mary Teresczuk, a third-year medical student at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine planning to pursue a career in surgery, gave a polished oral presentation on the University Hospitals breast surgery team’s initial experience with a novel surgical technique using magnetized seeds for breast and lymph node localization. Mary and her research mentors, Drs. Megan Miller and Jill Dietz, won the Second Place Research Award in the Cleveland Surgical Society Resident Essay Contest on May 7. Congratulations to Mary from the entire breast team!