The Jefferson County Health Center (JCHC) has a new technological offering, which is a localization marker called Magseed and a tracing agent called Magtrace. 

The Magseed marker is a tiny seed that is inserted into tissue by a radiologist days or weeks before surgery. During surgery, the surgeon detects the seed using a probe and allows for localization of the tumor cells. 

Magtrace is the first non-radioactive, dual tracer liquid used to map lymph nodes and help determine cancer progression and staging. It can be injected during surgery, days or even weeks before. The tracer allows the surgeon to accurately target lymph nodes for removal or biopsy.

JCHC Chief Operating Officer Curtis Smith adds, “We are actually the only hospital in an 80 mile radius that is using this new technique of Magseed and Magtrace. We felt it was necessary to bring this service here to modernize the surgical management but also recognize that breast cancer and those types of cancers are a family disease and we want people to get care closer to home.”

Smith adds that if someone has been diagnosed with an image that suggests they need surgical repair, Dr. Scott Stoeger can do that surgery. The individual’s family practice provider, internist or primary care provider just needs to call Dr. Stoeger’s office at 641-469-4204 and make a referral to him.