Nonprofit helps women get mammograms
If you’re due for a mammogram, there’s a way to get one for yourself and give one to a woman who can’t afford it — without costing you any additional money.
Shepherd’s Hope, a faithbased charity serving the uninsured and underinsured at five free health clinics in Orange and Seminole counties, has made arrangements with Sand Lake Imaging for a Get A Mammogram, Give a Mammogram initiative, which over the past six years has provided some 2,200 women with free screenings.
The program requires that women who want to donate a screening mammogram contact the imaging center during October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and make an appointment at any of three locations before the end of the year (sandlakeimaging.com). They need only to mention Shepherd’s Hope.
And women who lack insurance should contact Shepherd’s Hope (shepherdshope.org) to be enrolled as a patient.
“This year, we’re especially hoping to get the word to women who may have lost their insurance when they came here from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria,” said Marni Stahlman, Shepherd’s Hope president and CEO. “Please don’t skip your mammogram, not even for one year.”
Last month, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that more than 2.6 million Floridians lacked health insurance at some point in 2017 — or nearly 13 percent, the fifthhighest rate in the nation and significantly higher than the national average of 8.8 percent.
Too often, Stahlman said, uninsured women forgo the recommended exam because of the expense.
“The first year we did this, 20 out of 60 patients screened had an abnormal result, and three of them wound up having cancer,” she said. “I was shocked that it was so high. But it was just that a lot of them had put off getting a mammogram for years.”
But guidelines on who should get screening and when can be confusing, and professionals don’t always agree. The American Cancer Society recommends that, among women of average risk, those age 40 to 44 consider an annual mammogram; those 45 to 54 get an annual mammogram; and those 55 and older should get a mammogram every year or two. But many doctors recommend that women with a history of breast cancer in their immediate family, dense breast tissue, certain genetic factors or prior radiation therapy to their chest should start earlier than 45 — or even earlier than 40 — and continue to have the tests annually.
Dr. Lynda Frye, a Sand Lake Imaging radiologist, said she recommends all women get screened annually starting at age 40 and continue even into their 80s.
“The most compelling reason to do it is that breast cancer deaths are reduced 30 to 50 percent in women who are screened,” she said. “And breast cancer rates increase as we get older.”
For uninsured women whose mammograms reveal a potential problem, Shepherd’s Hope also uses its partnerships with hospitals, health centers and doctors to arrange for further diagnostic tests and treatment.
But the charity is not the only Central Florida organization to help low-income women get mammograms this month. Many screening centers offer significant discounts during October. In addition: Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation in Orlando, working with the Women’s Center for Radiology, helps qualifying women through a mobile mammography unit. Go to libbyslegacy.org and click the contact link or call 407-898-1991.
The Florida Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, funded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, helps women get clinical breast exams, mammograms, Pap tests and follow-up care for abnormal results, but the requirements vary by county. In Orange County, you must be age 50 to 64 (or 40 to 49 with an immediate family history of breast cancer), uninsured for the cost of the exams, and have a household income no more than 200 percent of the poverty level. Also, younger women are something eligible if they’re symptomatic. To see if you qualify, call the Florida Department of Health in your county or the American Cancer Society National Hotline at 1-800-227-2345.
The Komen Breast Care Helpline helps women in need find low-cost mammograms. Call 1-877 GO KOMEN (1-877-465-6636) Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.