KEEP ABREAST (Keep Advocating for BReast cancer Education And Screening Tests) project

Early detection is the key to successful treatment of breast cancer, and mammography screening provides the best chance of discovering breast cancer in its early stages. Thus, this project seeks to provide readily accessible mammograms for women over 40. The goal of the KEEP ABREAST (Keep Advocating for BReast cancer Education And Screening Tests) project is to reach at least 200 underserved women in Portage County, Ohio with outreach, education, prevention, screening, and treatment and support. Our target audience is women who utilize the services of: 1) Family &Community Services (F&CS) of Portage County and 2) the Portage County Community Health Center (PCCHC, a federally qualified clinic that serves as a safety net for the many uninsured in the county). This innovative program promotes primary prevention, specifically through the changing of modifiable lifestyle risk factors (nutrition, exercise, reduction of alcohol intake or smoking cessation, screening mammograms, BSE, etc.) which is discussed with women during either group session pre-mammogram or through individuals sessions post-mammogram. This project, funded by the Susan G. Komen Foundation, also provides education on BSE supplemented by brochures and demonstrations on breast models or on the internet. The KEEP ABREAST program refers women to local programs if they indicate a desire to stop smoking or drinking. Evaluation data from year one will be presented along with information about program replication and successes.