BREAST CANCER

Fox Chase Cancer Center
With a U.S. News & World Report ranking of 11th in the country for cancer, the 100-bed center treats nothing but cancer and prides itself on offering patients technology-driven treatment delivered by quality physicians in their chosen sub-specialties. Its investigators have won some of the leading awards in medicine, including the Nobel and Lasker prizes. Fox Chase is a strong proponent of personalized medicine for breast cancer patients, such as Oncotype DX, a test that measures the aggressiveness of tumors to assess the need for chemotherapy. And Fox Chase was a leader in risk-assessment programs for melanoma, GI and prostate cancers, and for women with family histories of breast and ovarian cancer (333 Cottman Avenue, 888-FOX CHASE).

Abramson Cancer Center
UPHS’s big-umbrella, with its number 29 slot in U.S. News, has particularly strong programs in breast cancer through the Joan Karnell Cancer Center at Pennsylvania Hospital (whose Women’s Imaging Center was honored as one of the five most influential such centers in the country by Imaging Technology News, for innovations like fully digitalized facilities) and the Rena Rowan Breast Center at HUP, co-created by star oncologist John Glick. At any given time, 200 clinical trials are available to patients, supported by a whopping $200 million in federal grants (3400 Spruce Street, 800-789-PENN).

Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Hospital
The 150 physicians and scientists at the Kimmel Cancer Center are discovering and developing novel approaches to cancer treatment while trying to better understand the way the disease behaves. Toward this end, they conduct more than 100 clinical trials a year and manage 20 institutions in the area in the cancer-care business. They bridge mainstream medicine with alternative and complementary therapies through the hospital’s integrative medicine program, and the busy radiation oncology center offers all the latest modalities. Aided by specialized clinicians and coordinators, patients receive comprehensive breast care services at Kimmel’s Breast Care Center including a risk assessment and hereditary breast and ovarian cancer/genetic counseling program, cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, and chemo and hormonal therapies. The radiology department’s advanced Breast Imaging Center performs a wide range of procedures such as mammograms, ultrasound-guided biopsies, and breast MRI examinations. (233 South 10th Street, 800-JEFF-NOW).