Biography
Dr. Avice O'Connell, is a Professor of Imaging Sciences and Director of Women's Imaging at the University of Rochester. She received her medical degree from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland and her radiology training and subsequent practice in Rochester, NY. She has 30 years of experience in breast imaging and is actively involved in teaching and research evaluating newer imaging modalities.
Dr. O'Connell is a fellow of American College of Radiology (ACR), Society of Breast Imaging (SBI) and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland.
She specializes in all aspects of breast imaging including screening, diagnosis, minimally invasive biopsies and follow up after cancer diagnosis.
Her research involves new technologies, in particular, cone beam CT of the breast contrast 3D imaging and recently deep learning with Samsung for ultrasound of breast masses.
Dr. O'Connell is a world renowned speaker and is very active in teaching medical students, residents and is frequently solicited for her expert opinion in the media.
Professional Background
Faculty Appointments
Professor of Clinical Imaging Sciences, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (2011-present)
Associate Professor of Imaging Sciences, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (2006 – 2011)
Clinical Assistant Professor of Imaging Sciences, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (1999 – 2006)
Professional Appointments
Clinical Teaching Faculty, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Rochester Institute of Technology (2011-present)
Attending Radiologist, University of Rochester Medical Center (2006 – present)
Attending Radiologist, Rochester General Hospital (1995 – 2006)
Attending Radiologist, St Mary's Hospital, Genesee Radiological Group (1981 – 1982)
Attending Radiologist, Highland Hospital/Genesee Hospital, IDE Radiology Group (1979 – 1981)
Administrative Appointments
Director of Women's Imaging, University of Rochester Medical Center (2006 – present)
Board of Directors, University Medical Imaging, Rochester, NY (2006 – 2007)
Vice President, Rochester Radiology Associates, (2000 – 2006)
President, Genesee Radiological Group and Northside Radiology (1996 – 2000)
Partner, Genesee Radiological Group and Northside Radiology (1982 – 1996)
Journal Reviewer
Reviewer – American Journal of Roentgenology (2006 – present)
Reviewer- Journal of Clinical Imaging Sciences (2011 - )
Professional Society Membership
Member – Radiological Society of North America (2007 – present)
Member – American Roentgen Ray Society (2007 – present)
Member – Society of Breast Imaging (2006 – present)
President, Rochester Academy of Medicine (2002 – 2003)
President – Rochester Roentgen Ray Society (1998 – 1999)
Board of Trustees, Rochester Academy of Medicine (1997 – 2004)
Treasurer/Secretary – Rochester Roentgen Ray Society (1994 – 1998)
Member – American College of Radiology (1989 – present)
Fellow-2007
President – Rochester Ultrasound Society (1981 – 1982)
Research
I believe I am one of the few radiologists in the world with hands-on experience in dedicated breast CT imaging. Breast CT is now approved for clinical use in Europe, but only a very small part of its potential has been explored. Mammography is the gold standard in routine screening and diagnosis of breast cancer. However, limitations in sensitivity and specificity, particularly in dense breasts, has motivated the development of alternative techniques such as digital breast tomosynthesis, whole breast ultrasound, nuclear medicine imaging methods and more recently dedicated breast CT. I am also very active with research focusing on Cone Beam CT imaging. Cone Beam CT imaging provides pictures of tissue around the ribs and outer breast towards the armpit, where 50 percent of cancers are found. The Cone Beam Breast Computed Tomography scanner takes 360-degree views of breast anatomy and in one case showed a cancer which was hard to detect on a mammogram. So far the Cone Beam scanner has detected every tumor seen on a mammogram. Mammograms in the best hands in the world will miss 15 percent of tumors because they are difficult to read. This is because the mammogram X-ray reduces a three-dimensional structure, the breast, to two dimensions and mammograms often show only part of a tumor, and what appears as a speck on a mammogram is often at the core of a much larger tumor. The process takes only 10 seconds; the breast is allowed to hang through a hole in the table while the scanner takes 300 shots from every angle. The scanner has the same dose of radiation as a mammogram but the procedure will probably cost more; the average cost of a mammogram is $80, while a CT can cost several hundred. Breast cancer remains the biggest cancer killer of women, after lung cancer, with 1.2 million cases globally and 270,000 in the United States alone. It kills 500,000 men and women every year globally and 40,000 in the United States. The University of Rochester has licensed the technology to a Rochester, New York start-up company, Koning Corporation, to make, use and sell Cone Beam scanners.
Awards
2018 - Present
Fellow-Elect
Sponsor: Royal College of Physicians of Ireland
2018 - 2018
Gift in Honor to the Breast Cancer Imaging Fund
Sponsor: The Louis S. & Molly B. Wolk Foundation
Location: Rochester, New York
2015 - 2015
Certificate of Appreciation
Sponsor: Journal of Clinical Imaging Science
2015 - 2015
Appreciation for Reviewing five manuscripts
Sponsor: Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine
2014
2014 Certificate of Distinguished Services to the Medical Profession of Rochester
Sponsor: Rochester Academy of Medicine
Location: Rochester, NY
2013
Tribute – National Women's Hall of Fame, Book of Lives and Legacies (2013) 3rd place winner
Sponsor: American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine
2013
2013 Communicator Awards
Sponsor: Second Opinion Cable Show
2013
"Top Doc" Diagnostic Radiology
Sponsor: 585 Magazine
2012
Bronze Statue - 2012 Telly Award
Sponsor: Second Opinion TV
2011
Certificate of Merit "Cone Beam CT of the Breast: What is Hidden in Dense Breasts?"
Location: Education Exhibit presented at the 97th Annual RSNA Mtg.
2011
Certificate of Merit " Management of Papillary Breast Lesions: An Imaging Pathology-based Approach"
Location: Education Exhibit presented at the 97th Annual RSNA mtg.
2008 - 2009
Arvin Robinson Award for senior faculty member who demonstrates excellence in resident education and teaching
Sponsor: Department of Imaging Sciences
Location: University of Rochester Medical Center - Rochester, NY
2008
Award of Merit for poster on "Cone Beam Computed Tomography of the Breast" with Sarah Majewski & Richard Gong
Sponsor: Radiological Society of North America
Location: RSNA Annual Conference - Chicago, IL
2007
Elected as Fellow
Sponsor: American College of Radiology
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Publications
Journal Articles
2018
Avice M. O'Connell, MD, MA, FACR, Andrew Karellas, PhD, FAAPM, FACR, Srinivasan Vedantham, PhD, FAAPM, Daniel T. Kawakyu-O'Connor, MD. "Newer Technologies in Breast Cancer Imaging: Dedicated Cone-Beam Breast Computed Tomography" . Seminars in Ultrasound, CT and MRI. 2018; 39(1): 106-113.
2018
Avice O'Connell, MD, MA FACR; Andrew Karellas, PhD, FAAPM, FACR; Srinivasan Vedantham, PhD, FAAPM; Daniel T. Kawakyu-O'Connor, MD. "Newer Technologies in Breast Cancer Imaging: Dedicated Coney-Beam Breast Computed Tomography". Seminars in Ultrasound CT and MRI. 2018; 39(1): 106-113.
2014
Vedantham S; O'Connell AM; Shi L; Karellas A; Huston AJ; Skinner KA. "Dedicated Breast CT: Feasibility for Monitoring Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Treatment" . The Breast Journal. 2014; 20(6): 592-605.
Books & Chapters
2018
Chapter Title: Cone-Beam Breast CT
Book Title: Mammographic Imaging: A Practical Guide Fourth Edition
Author List: Avice O'Connell
Edited By: Valerie F. Andolina, MD & Shelly L. Lille, MD
Published By: Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 2018
2018
Chapter Title: Mammography and Breast Cancer Screen
Book Title: The Little Book of Menopause: Living with the challenges of breast cancer
Author List: Avice O'Connell, MD
Edited By: James Woods, MD, Elizabeth Warner, MD, Adrienne Bonham, MD
Published By: University of Rochester 2018 in Rochester
2017
Book Title: CONE-BEAM BREAST CT-ESSENTIALS: CBCT
Author List: Avice M. O'Connell, MD Editor
Vikram S. Dogra, MD Consulting Editor
Published By: Imaging Science Today LLC 2017
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