Dr. Tana Frisina, owner of Frisina Family Wellness, has expanded her practice to include thermography, a service which was not previously available in the Springfield area.

“I bought the building next door in December, but I wasn’t really sure what to do with it,” said Frisina of the space that most recently housed Shanti’s Studio, 1535 S. MacArthur. However, her mother had previously been diagnosed with breast cancer and Frisina’s doctor had urged her to start getting mammograms, which she said she didn’t feel comfortable doing due to the radiation involved.

“I started looking at different avenues, and there was a place in St. Louis that offered thermography. I started looking into what it would take to do it here,” Frisina said. Thermography uses an infrared camera to detect heat patterns and blood flow in body tissues, which advocates claim can be used for early detection of breast cancer or other diseases and health conditions.

Frisina and one of her staff members traveled to Florida to complete the necessary training to be certified in thermography. She then purchased the equipment and named the new business Frisina Possibilities, LLC.

“Most people who have done it so far are opting for a whole-body scan, although we can also focus on the breast or another particular area,” she explained. “It’s non-invasive and there’s no radiation or contrast dyes,” Frisina said of the benefits of thermography versus an MRI or CT scan. The pictures are sent to a doctor to be read, and the resulting report is given to the patient, which Frisina said she reviews with them to recommend any follow up needed with various other practitioners.

Frisina is currently only offering the service to existing patients, but plans to make it available to the public beginning in July.