Group takes breast cancer awareness to the pulpit

The non-profit Access Community Health Care organization is counting on its extra efforts of reaching out to the faithbased community to spread the word about women cancer prevention and treatments.

Executives from Access Community Health Care, various state legislators and African American ministers from the city and surrounding suburbs launched the Stand Against Breast Cancer Breakfast at Freedom Temple Church of God on the South Side, ACHC spokeswoman Elaine H. Bowen told the Defender.

"We know that although African American and Hispanic women get breast cancer at a much lower rate than white women, we are dying more than white women from the disease because we get diagnosed much later when the cancer is in an advanced stage," Bowen said. "Part of the stand against cancer is an educational program. So we have advocated going to churches and different community base organizations and talking about cancer awareness.

"You may have a woman who says, Tm 50 years old and I never had a mammogram.' So if she has no insurance she could very well come to us for the mammogram or pap smear in conjunction with Mt. Sinai Hospital."

"The Stand Against Cancer" program provides either low-cost or free mammograms and/or pap smears throughout the state for women who are low income, under-served and uninsured," Bowen continued. "Most of the funding for the program - and to the organization - comes from the state."

In 2006, the ACHC group provided 13,539 breast and cervical cancer screenings throughout a network of its health centers - and other centers - in the city and the suburbs.

"And in that year, we also provided follow-up for 844 women who got back abnormal (results)," Bowen said. "Out of the 844 with abnormals, came about 68 cases of cancer or pre-cancer. That could have been breast, cervical or ovarian cancer.

"The luncheon on Monday was really a rally to get more of the faith-based community involved; to get more ministers in the pulpit to speak their congregations about cancer awareness."

Bowen said alarming statistics show that the rate of African American women dying from cancer is the same as it was 23 years ago. So her organization is also calling for more area hospitals to become involved and offer biopsies and follow-up care for women who don't have health insurance.

Access Community Health Network has 48 health centers throughout the city and suburbs. Any church interested in being part of the "Stand Against Breast Cancer" program can call Bowen at (773) 257-6599.

Uninsured women wanting to know more about ACHC can call the toll-free number at 722-4673.

[Author Affiliation]

by Demetrius Patterson

Defender Staff Writer