Affiliate and partnering organizations launched the Camden County Screening Project on June 14. Pictured from left are Evelyn Robles-Rodriguez, director of Oncology Outreach Programs at the Cooper Cancer Institute; Nery Rivera, a breast cancer survivor; Generosa Grana, MD, director of the Cooper Cancer Institute; Locke Barber, DO, medical director of the Medical Imaging Department at Able Imaging & Women’s Center; Nicole Figueredo, MD, a breast surgeon at Virtua Breast Specialty Care; Kathy Greatrex, MD, chief of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center; Edward Petrella, MD, South Jersey Radiology Associates; and Elaine I. Grobman, executive director of the Komen Philadelphia Affiliate.
CAMDEN – Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center has partnered with the Philadelphia Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and other healthcare providers in an effort to provide Hispanic/Latina women with breast cancer screenings and access to services that could save their lives.
The $200,000 “Camden County Screening Project,” which was introduced during a June 14 press conference at Camden’s City Hall, will provide 400 free mammograms to eligible Latina women and educate 2,000 women on important breast health issues over the next 10 months.
Komen and its five partners, including Lourdes, will engage in a coordinated effort to identify and reach Latinas most in need of breast health education and screening in various neighborhoods throughout Camden County.
“Minority populations have a higher mortality rate from breast cancer compared to their Caucasian counterparts,” explained Kathleen V. Greatrex, MD, chief of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center. “We have to work extremely hard because these women often don’t know about breast cancer and are not having yearly clinical breast exams or screening mammograms.”
Outreach workers, including volunteers with “Pretty in Pink,” a breast cancer education program founded by Lourdes operating room technician Michelle Vaughn, will use culturally sensitive communications and interactions to raise awareness for this opportunity among Latinas of all ages. Women will be given one-on-one referral assistance and, if eligible, will be directed to one of the four screening sites for mammography and follow-up assessment. Individuals who would like to schedule a screening for themselves or a loved one should call 856-325-4110 or 856-968-7091.