As if awaiting results from a breast biopsy isn't frightening enough, a woman also may have to endure pain and scarring from the procedure itself.
While the waiting part remains, the physical discomfort is being lessened by use of a minimally invasive device known as a
mammotome. The device is so innovative and increasingly well known its name now is also the name of the company that makes it.
Mammotome began as the breast care segment of Johnson & Johnson's Ethicon Endo-Surgery, based in the Cincinnati area.
Devicor Medical Products Inc. of Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, acquired the segment and has established Mammotome's headquarters in the Cincinnati suburb of Sharonville. The transaction closed in July.
The Ohio Department of Development granted the company a 60- job creation tax credit for seven years, valued at $1.5 million.
Mammotome, the device, is sold in more than 50 countries. Mammotome, the company, employs 300 around the world; 100 of which are in Ohio; total employment is expected to reach about 600 eventually.
Besides the namesake device, the company also makes breast tissue markers called MammoMARK, MicroMARK, and CorMARK.
The company has said it plans to build a new manufacturing plant in the next year or so. A spokesman declined to discuss possible locations.
However, "The senior management team shares my commitment to investment and innovation as we continue to build on Mammotome's position as a leading global breast care company," CEO Tom Daulton said in a news release.
Source: Devicor Medical Products/MammotomeWriter: Gabriella Jacobs