Ruth D. Sarmiento, MD

I have always been a visual person. After graduating from college, I worked in fashion and design management and lived in Italy for a year while studying for a master’s degree. But I realized I wanted to help people, and I have always loved science, so I decided to make a career change. I quit my job and enrolled in a post-baccalaureate premedical program to pursue a career in medicine. In medical school, I was fascinated by radiology, a visual specialty where medicine and technology merge. Radiology provides answers to tough clinical questions and offers minimally invasive interventions and treatments.

I decided to subspecialize in breast imaging so I could focus on preventive medicine. Screening mammograms offer the best chance to detect breast cancer early, when the disease is more likely to be silent but is also very treatable. An early detected cancer has the least impact on a person’s quality of life.

I interpret screening and diagnostic mammograms, ultrasounds, and MRIs. I use a variety of imaging techniques to perform breast procedures and evaluate breast disease. I care for people who have breast cancer from the time of their diagnosis to their post-treatment follow-up and surveillance.

I use imaging to help guide the work of surgeons performing a lumpectomy, in which some breast tissue is removed. Before surgery, I localize the targeted tissue with a needle or an embedded device, helping the surgeon to precisely remove it.

As a member of a multidisciplinary team focused on the comprehensive treatment of breast cancer, I work closely with surgeons, oncologists, pathologists, plastic surgeons, radiation oncologists, and geneticists. I am proud to work alongside caring and compassionate nurses and technologists at our breast-imaging center. We believe in patient-centered care and empowering patients to make informed decisions about their treatment. A breast cancer diagnosis can be life altering, and I strive to support my patients by delivering individualized, evidence-based, and—above all—compassionate care.

In addition to my clinical work, I am interested in global medicine. I was part of a nonprofit group that established a radiology residency program in Georgetown, Guyana. Currently, I am remotely supporting the radiologists in Guyana in expanding their breast imaging program. I also train residents in radiology and breast imaging.