Susan A. Higgins, MD, is a therapeutic radiologist who specializes in breast cancer radiotherapy. She uses targeted radiation treatments to manage and treat breast cancer, helping patients by reducing tumor size and alleviating symptoms.
"Breast cancer treatment is a team sport that involves systemic therapy (chemotherapy), surgery, and radiation therapy — all interdependent cogs in a complex machine," Dr. Higgins says. “Radiation therapy can reduce the risk of local and regional recurrence by at least fifty percent.”
Dr. Higgins emphasizes the importance of tailoring treatment regimens that best fit individual needs. These treatments may include recent advances in radiation therapy, including deep inspiration breath hold technique, which reduces radiation exposure to the heart and lungs, and targeted high-dose stereotactic radiation for metastatic lesions. “The main goal of these approaches is to maximize the dose to the target while minimizing the dose to the underlying organs," she says.
Dr. Higgins received her medical training from the University of Rochester, completed her internship in internal medicine at St. Mary’s Hospital, and pursued residency training in therapeutic radiology at Yale School of Medicine. She is a professor of therapeutic radiology and of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine.
