Sunlight Natural Health has partnered with Therma-Scan Reference Laboratory – the World’s Premier & Most Advanced Interpretation Service for Breast, Carotid, and Thyroid Thermography
All services are:
- Radiation-free
- Painless
- Non-invasive
- Contactless
- Compression-free
Thermography (also known as thermology) measures temperature changes within the body. It can be a lifesaving diagnostic tool by detecting changes which can indicate early stages of diseases or other changes in your body. Thermography is a radiation-free way to help ensure your health.
Therma-Scan is UNIQUE
Therma-Scan is the most advanced, sensitive, and reliable thermography services available anywhere.
Therma-Scan Reference Laboratory has been the foremost Innovator and interpreter of the autonomic challenge referred to as the cold-water stress test (breast thermography). This test is VITAL for an accurate scan and is rarely performed by other interpretation companies due to the extensive training and experience necessary for accurate interpretation.
Not all infra-red cameras are created equal!
We use state-of-the-art, radiometric cameras rather than inferior “imaging” cameras where computer software must then separately analyze for only “hot spots”. Radiometric cameras on the other hand precisely measure within 1/100th of a degree with the technology built directly into the camera.
Breast Thermography
Early detection saves lives! Thermography reveals functional changes as early as 5-8 years before other means of testing.
Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide, claiming 9.6 million lives in 2018 according to the World Health Organization. We know that earlier detection saves lives, however, traditional medical tests are not always the first in detecting abnormalities in the breast tissue.
Infrared Thermography has redefined early detection for Breast Cancer by providing the earliest and most sensitive means of screening. This simple procedure of taking digital computerized pictures with a specialized Thermography camera is safe, non toxic, highly accurate and is an inexpensive form of diagnostic imaging used by progressive physicians in the US and Europe for over 60 years.
Unlike Mammography, Thermography offers patients radiation-free screening without compression or contact. It is especially ideal for women who:
- have dense or post-surgery breast tissue
- are on hormone replacement therapy
- have had a mastectomy or other previous biopsies
- have a history of fibrocystic breasts
- are pregnant or lactating
- are premenopausal
- have breast implants
- have had breast reductions
- have very small or very large breasts
- are interested in safe, early breast health assessment
The Procedure
Step One: Disrobed from the waist up, you will sit behind a curtain for 15 minutes for an acclimation period. During which time we will review your breast-related medical history. The acclimation period is vital allowing the body to reach a steady temperature state in equilibrium with the very special temperature conditions of the room.
Step Two: Three images will be taken.
Step Three: Your hands will be submerged in cool water for one minute. This is referred to as the Autonomic Challenge or cold stress test.
Step Four: Three final images are taken within a very specific parameter of time to take advantage of the cold water stress test.
The Science
The Autonomic Challenge (cold-water stress test), also considered a functional test, is vital for an accurate and specialized scan. Therma-Scan surpasses industry standards with this specialized part of the scan.
In the breast tissue the vascular structures (blood vessels) are close to the surface. This test challenges the blood vessels to contract. Healthy vessels will contract for a period of time after you submerge your hands in cold water. Unhealthy vessels (those at their earliest stages of development or that grow to “feed” a disease) do not contract.
In addition, when there is a developing cancer there is evidence of nitric oxide which causes blood vessels to expand, thereby “feeding the disease”. Both of these mechanisms of a disease process require the unparalleled expertise of the Therma-Scan trained thermologist with a second reading by Dr. Philip Hoekstra for all breast scans. Dr. Hoekstra is our Science Clinic Director and has personally read over a million scans.
***Due to the specialized nature of the scan, it is important that you follow the PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS carefully in order to achieve a meaningful evaluation. The preparation instructions explain what conditions to avoid which could cause adverse influences.***
Thermography Greatly Improves the Accuracy of Mammograms!
Thermography is considered an adjunctive procedure and a vital part of any comprehensive breast program, although some women use Thermography solely.
Thermography is a true screening procedure looking at functional changes. It is non-invasive. It often can reveal the earliest changes in the breast tissue (5-8 years earlier).
It differs from mammography which is looking for structural changes, which typically occur later in life. Many people are unaware that only a biopsy can diagnose breast cancer. Testing to rule out or to determine whether a biopsy should be performed has traditionally been the role of a mammography. However, more recent studies are advocating for less invasive forms of testing as they are often more accurate.
Every medical test has a purpose and “specialty” in determining the risk factor for breast cancer or other breast related conditions. Thermography is a functional test, not a structural test, as is the case with mammography, diagnostic mammography, ultrasound and MRIs. This is why it can accurately determine risk factors to a high percentage years before more invasive breast cancer cells may be found with other means of testing.
Thyroid Thermography
The thyroid gland is located at the base of the neck, just above the clavicles, and just beneath the skin. The thyroid gland produces hormones that regulate metabolic rate which strongly affect body weight, energy level, immune competence, and fertility. The symptoms of thyroid disorders usually develop so slowly that most people don’t distinguish them from aging. Common symptoms include unexplained gain or loss of body weight, intolerance of cold or heat, loss of hair, pain of joints and muscles, heart palpitations, poor memory/concentration and depression. Women are more likely to develop thyroid disorders, especially hypothyroidism, and the most common cause of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto’s disease. Family history, radiation exposure, and pregnancy seem to initiate Hashimoto’s – a degenerative disease of the thyroid gland caused by the body’s own immune system. Graves’ disease is another manifestation of an immune disorder in which abnormal antibodies stimulate the production of unusually high levels of thyroid hormones.
The dense vascularization and superficial location of the thyroid gland enable an evaluation of its metabolic activity by high-resolution infrared imaging. Thermography can provide a valuable adjunctive modality that complements laboratory assessment of hormone levels and antibody titers, clinical examination and symptoms in the diagnosis of thyroid disorders, such as Hashimoto’s and Graves’ disease, goiter as well as thyroid cancer. Thermography findings are well correlated with clinical symptoms and provide an objective indication for laboratory determination of thyroid hormone levels and antibody titers. Thermography also provides a simple and non-invasive means of screening cancer from benign thyroid cysts. The imaging process is completely passive (non-contact and non-radiation) and involves only a few images of the base of the neck. Thermography can also provide a useful monitor of the effectiveness of treatment programs for thyroid disorders.
Carotid Thermography
Stroke is the most common neurologic disease and the third most common cause of death in the developed world. The root cause of most strokes is atherosclerosis. atherosclerosis is a slow and progressive process that narrows the lumen of arteries with the buil-up of plaque and scar tissue, which predicates the acute clotting crisis. The carotid arteries supply approximately 85% of the blood to the brain and significant levels of atherosclerosis in the carotid arteries present the highest single risk factor for stroke. Clinical symptoms of carotid insufficiency can be vague, making non-invasive and effective screening methods all the more important.
The superficial distribution of important branches of the internal carotid arteries in the face and easily evaluated with thermal imaging as a means to detect diminished blood flow and risk for stroke. Thermal imaging can detect hemodynamically significant stenosis of the carotid arteries with a very high sensitivity as compared to arteriopgraphy. Additionally, thermal imaging can also reveal indications of arterial compensation (natural bypasses) in the carotid artery network which can be important to decisions in treatment. Thermography is completely harmless, non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and quantitative.
Full Body Thermography
In our clinical opinion the application of thermography for full body scans is at best speculative and experimental. Many factors contribute to this opinion: lack of peer-reviewed articles, vascular structure too deep within the body (vs. closer surface blood vessels such as with breast tissue) limiting differentiating organs from one another, and financial gain influencing clinical decisions.
This does not mean a practitioner of integrity is unable to ascertain generalized data which can support further testing. What it does say is we are unable to support this “en vogue” application at this time until further research substantiates clinical validity.
