Imagine being able to detect cancer almost eight years before any physical symptoms occur. This may sound farfetched, then there’s the opportunity to intervene in a disease before its diagnosis. With medicine’s advancements over the last decade, it could be that anything is possible, including predicting the future.

 

For Dr. Philip Getson, helping patients see the future has been a passion since 1982.

 

At Thermographic Diagnostic Imaging (TDI), in Marlton, Getson specializes in breast examinations to detect physiologic abnormalities in the breast that might be precursors to breast cancer, while also providing insights into the presence of neuromuscular, thyroid, dental and sinus diseases. As a doctor of Osteopathy, both Getson and his wife Liesha, live by the philosophy of patient-centered care that empowers and educates individuals to become proactive in their life choices, so as to maximize their well-being and make them aware of the infinite possibilities of life.

 

Using a technique known as infrared thermal imaging, they assess the physiology of a patient’s body, more specifically breast imaging, to detect early signals of breast dysfunction.

 

“In medicine, physiology precedes anatomy,” Philip says. “You’ll get symptoms of pneumonia before it shows up on an X-ray. You could see changes that a breast is diseased before a mammogram shows a tumor the size of a pencil eraser.”
 

The equipment used in thermographic imaging uses naturally emitted infrared radiation from a patient’s skin surface. Any temperature incongruences in the body are picked up in the image, allowing doctors to analyze the physiology of a patient’s body and if such incongruences are dangerous. This temperature change is caused by a distortion in blood flow, which can precede the formation of a tumor.

 

This infrared imaging involves no compression or radiation of the breast.

 

“In a mammogram, women often have to experience 50 pounds of pressure on their breasts, while also exposing them to radiation,” Liesha says. “It’s not an alternative to a mammogram, but allows for earlier detection and thus earlier intervention.”

 

Using thermographic imaging is a way that he exercises his medical philosophy of holistic healing, as well as providing both an alternative and non-invasive resource to women who want to take full control of their health.

 

According to peer-reviewed medical journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine and British medical journals, over the last five years, Philip says, there is increasing evidence that mammograms aren’t as effective as they have been marketed to be. Sources such as the American Cancer Association and the American Academy of Radiology confirm this, too, he says.

 

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 6 to 46 percent of women with invasive cancer will have negative mammograms, especially if they are young, have dense breasts or have mucinous, lobular, or rapidly growing cancers. “In addition, recent research studies have shown that mammography often finds tumors that are so innocuous that if left alone, that they don’t alter quality of life,” Philip says. “[Doctors] find micro-calcifications, start sticking patients with needles and then surgery and or radiation—we’re doing mastectomies on these things that aren’t breast cancer—the aggressiveness is overwhelming.

 

“When you couple that with radiation, a known carcinogen, there’s 50 pounds of weight applied to breast, which damages it—we’re radiating someone for diseases caused by radiation,” he says.

 

Thermographic imaging can be used on women that are 20 years old, if desired, which is when the first signs of breast cancer can begin, according to him.

 

“If you could prevent something five to eight years earlier, why wouldn’t you?” he says.

 

 Liesha Getson, who is also a Certified Holistic Health Counselor and is a Reiki Master, says the experience is very different from a typical mammogram.

 

“Women get this feeling that the techniques of a mammogram feel wrong, but then they are harassed and made to feel like they’re not doing their due diligence or taking responsibility,” she says. “I like to say we believe in honoring the divine feminine. It allows a woman to maintain dignity; they’re doing something good for themselves and something they can feel good about.”

 

In addition to offering thermographic imaging, TDI offers an infrared sauna, which is used for thorough detoxification, as well as a family practice.

 

TDI is located in the Garden State Community Medical Center, 100 Brick Rd in Marlton. To make an appointment visit tdinj.com or call 856-596-5834