October Is a Reminder: Early Breast Cancer Detection Can Save Lives
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October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month message is simple but powerful: Don’t put off your mammogram.
For women, regular breast cancer screening can be one of the most important steps toward finding cancer early, when it is smaller, has not spread and is more likely to be successfully treated. The American Cancer Society recommends that women at average risk have the option to begin annual mammograms at age 40. Women ages 45 to 54 should receive mammograms every year, while women 55 and older can continue yearly screening or switch to every other year, as long as they remain in good health. Women at higher risk may need earlier and additional screening, including breast MRI, and should discuss their individual risk with a healthcare provider.
Helping Women In Our Community
The Conway Medical Center Foundation is working throughout October, and throughout the year, to make those potentially lifesaving screenings more accessible. Through its Mammography Initiative, the CMC Foundation provides free mammograms to qualifying women who are uninsured or underinsured and do not qualify for the Best Chance Network. Assistance can also extend to follow-up services such as biopsies and ultrasounds. Since the initiative began, the CMC Foundation has provided more than $800,000 in breast health services.
“We don’t want finances to be the reason someone puts off a mammogram or doesn’t get the care they need,” said Harley Shelley, assistant director of the CMC Foundation. “When we can remove that barrier, we have an opportunity to find breast cancer earlier, when it is more treatable. That’s what this is really about, making sure women in our community have access to the screenings and care that can potentially save their lives.”
Community support makes that access possible. The CMC Foundation’s October fundraising activities include the Wicked Crawl for Cancer, where participating downtown Conway businesses offer specialty food and drink items and proceeds benefit local cancer patients. The Breast Cancer Awareness Ride, scheduled for Oct. 24, will also benefit the CMC Foundation.
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“The support of this community means everything to us because it gives us the ability to help people right here at home,” Shelley said. “Every dollar raised gives us another opportunity to provide a mammogram, help someone get to treatment, or ease some of the financial burden that comes with a cancer diagnosis. We see first-hand how much these resources can mean to patients and their families. When our community comes together and supports these efforts, they help us reach more people, provide more care, and ultimately save lives. That is something we are incredibly grateful for.”
The CMC Foundation’s Cancer Care Fund helps patients facing cancer with urgent needs including transportation, groceries, medications and medical supplies, allowing them to focus more fully on treatment and healing.
Women who need financial assistance for a mammogram or breast cancer follow-up care can call 843-347-8170 to determine whether they qualify. For more information on CMC October Pink events, go to www.cmcfoundationsc.com/events/pink-events/.
How to Schedule Your Mammogram
To schedule your mammogram, call the CMC Imaging Center on Singleton Ridge Road or the CMC Imaging Center at Church Street located in West Conway at 843-234-5474. You can find the 3D Mobile Mammography Center upcoming dates and locations HERE.
How the CMC Foundation can help
The CMC Foundation covers the costs of screening mammograms and provides financial assistance for other mammography services provided at our Imaging Center and on the CMC Mobile Mammography Center for people who qualify. They are able to do this through the generosity of multiple community partners and individual donors who give to the CMC Mammography Initiative.
If you or a loved one is in need of an annual screening mammogram or other breast cancer follow-up care, find out if assistance is available to you through the CMC Foundation. You may have the option to access our program if you are uninsured or under-insured and also do not qualify for the Best Chance Network program
To see if you qualify, please call 843-347-8170.
All content of this article is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please consult a medical professional before adopting any of the suggestions on this page. You must never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment based on any content of this article.
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