AHN’s free cancer screenings to continue in 2024
Early detection important, health professionals stress
On Nov. 24, Marilyn Cohn heard from her doctor. The phone call was to report the results of a skin check she had received two months prior at an Allegheny Health Network free cancer screening event, held at Premier Medical Associates in Monroeville. The doctor told Ms. Cohn she had melanoma.
“I am totally shocked I had melanoma,” said Ms. Cohn, an 84-year-old Pennsylvania native living in Monroeville.
“I had no pain, no anything, and I didn’t even realize the mole was there.”
The mole in question was on her left arm, near her elbow. Ms. Cohn said she had to twist her arm to see it. At the Sept. 30 cancer screening, she put on a gown and staff performed a full-body skin check, where they identified the mole.
The free monthly screenings will continue in the new year, with AHN announcing its first event of 2024 for Saturday, Jan. 20, at the AHN Forbes Cancer Institute on Haymaker Road, in Monroeville.
The screenings are provided at no cost, and anyone can attend, regardless of insurance status. Cancers to be screened at the event include breast (ages 40 and older), cervical (ages 21-65), colorectal (45 and up), head and neck (18 and up), prostate (45 and up), skin (18 and up) and lung (ages 50-80 with a history of smoking). Registration is open through Jan 12, or until spots are filled.
This is the third year AHN will offer the screenings, part of an effort to promote early detection of cancer. Research shows that cancer prognosis often improves when it is caught early.
Melanoma is not the most common skin cancer, but it can be deadly if not caught early. When caught in an early stage, the five-year relative survival rate is greater than 99%. Once melanoma spreads — considered distant — that survival rate drops to 32%.
“I’ve seen how metastatic and advanced-stage cancer affects patients and their families,” said Tiffany Koss, a supervisor with the AHN screening program. “It’s so much better when it’s caught early.”
Ms. Koss, a certified registered nurse practitioner, has worked in medical oncology for the past decade. She had volunteered at an AHN cancer screening event in the spring, and she liked it so much, she applied for an open position a few months later.
At last year’s events, AHN staff performed 2,376 screenings on 962 patients. An average of 19% of screenings were identified as abnormal, and providers found five confirmed malignancies — including Marilyn Cohn’s.
Both Ms. Cohn’s mother and sister had cancer, though not skin-related.
“When I saw what they went through, when there’s a screening, I jumped on the fact,” she said. Ms. Cohn is thrilled that the moving melanoma was caught, and she received surgery a few months later to remove it.
“It was a success story,” she said.
Her follow-up appointment to check on the surgery site, on Thursday, went “super,” she said: The cancer is gone, and she does not have to return for further follow-up.
ButMs. Cohn still plans to attend the January screeningevent in Monroeville.
“Ifit’s moving melanoma, I just want to make sure it hasn’t gone to another part ofthe body,” she said.
In addition to the monthly events, which occur at multiple locations across Western Pennsylvania, including as far as AHN Erie East Side, in Erie, the health system holds weekly cancer screenings, which Ms. Koss said have an even morepersonalized feel, and a different flow.
I’ve seen how metastatic and advanced-stage cancer affects patients and their families. It’s so much better when it’s caught early.”
Tiffany Koss supervisor, AHN screening program
They occur twice a week, on Tuesdays at AHN Jefferson, and on Wednesdays at AHN Forbes. Those interested should call and make an appointment, and whichever screenings they request will be performed by Ms. Koss in a one-onone, hour-long visit. Unlike the monthly sessions, these visits are billed through insurance, and patients may have a co-pay.
AHN also plans to further expand its screening efforts for the underserved population.
Those interested in the January event should call 412-325-9015 to reserve their spot.