Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center has received a $15,000 grant from Sisters Network® Inc. Karen E. Jackson Breast Cancer Assistance Program (BCAP) to expand access to mammogram services for uninsured women across the region. This funding will be used to support Mary Bird Perkins’ Prevention on the Go (POGO) program and will extend services to women across 31 parishes in Louisiana and four counties in Southwest Mississippi.
Sisters Network® Inc., a leading national African American breast cancer survivorship organization, is committed to increasing local and national attention to the devastating impact that breast cancer has in the African American community.
“We are excited to partner with the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center to provide 3D mammograms for uninsured women in Louisiana and Southwest Mississippi through our Breast Cancer Assistance Program (BCAP),” stated Karen E. Jackson, founder/CEO, Sisters Network® Inc. “Women must make their breast health a top priority, and Sisters Network® Inc is proud that our national organization can help make mammograms accessible to women who might otherwise not be able to afford one. Early detection is not a slogan, it can truly save lives,” added Jackson.
Mary Bird Perkins’ nationally-recognized Prevention on the Go program is designed to provide education and early detection services in locations where people live, work, worship, shop and play – all at no cost to residents. With a fleet of mobile medical clinics, the Cancer Center travels throughout Louisiana and Southwest Mississippi to serve thousands of participants each year. Since 2002, the Prevention on the Go program has provided more than 111,000 screenings resulting in nearly 835 cancers detected. Last year alone, Mary Bird Perkins provided more than 5,700 preventive screenings to residents across the region.
“Our Prevention on the Go program is powered by the generosity of our community and through the support of organizations like Sisters Network® Inc.,” said Renea Duffin, vice president, cancer support and outreach, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “Sisters Network® Inc.’s mission to address breast cancer within the African American community aligns perfectly with the mission of our POGO program. Over the next few months, this grant will go directly toward providing life-saving mammograms to women across our region who are under or uninsured to these early detection services.”
Women are advised to get a clinical breast exam at least every three years, starting in their 20s, and get an annual exam and mammogram starting at age 40.