Hospital, agencies team up for effort
BROWNSVILLE – Brownsville General Hospital, the American Cancer Society and the Family Health Council are teaming up in October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month to bring Fayette County residents better access to cancer care services. Representatives from the hospital, American Cancer Society and Family Health Council will be available with life-saving information and free breast exams from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22.
Nurse practitioners from the Family Health Council will be on-site at the hospital to perform free breast exams and provide vouchers for low-cost and no cost mammograms for those who qualify. Appointments for the breast examination are necessary and can be made by calling 724-785-1999.
More women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer every year than with any other cancer except skin cancer. This year, about 192,000 women will be diagnosed and about 40,000 women will die of the disease. Many of these lives could have been saved by early diagnosis.
Most women who get breast cancer have no family history of the disease or other risk factors. Breast cancer can occur at any age, but it becomes more common as a woman gets older.
Although some women are at slightly higher risk – women whose mothers or sisters had breast cancer, women who have never had children and women who had their first child after the age of 30 – the biggest risk factor for breast cancer is being a woman. The use of tamoxifen in higher risk women may lower risk of developing breast cancer.
The earlier breast cancer is detected, the easier it is to treat.
The American Cancer Society recommends the following guidelines for early detection for women age 40 and older:
– Have a mammogram every year.
– Have a clinical breast exam by a healthcare professional every year.
– Do a breast self-exam each month.
Guidelines for women ages 20 to 39 are as follows:
– Do a breast self-exam each month.
– Have a clinical breast exam by a health care professional every three years.
Representatives from all three facilities will be on-site to provide educational information, support groups, referrals, financial assistance, medical supplies and medication assistance.