The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program has awarded a $37,000 one-year grant to MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper’s Camden County Cancer Screening Project (CCCSP) to increase awareness of the life-saving benefits of early detection of breast cancer. It is the tenth year that the program has received funding from the Avon Foundation for Women to support its work on this important health issue, and in recognition of the program’s excellence.
The Camden County Cancer Screening Project at MD Anderson Cooper will educate Camden-area women and refer them to low-cost or free mammograms and clinical breast exams in their own communities. This year’s focus is on ensuring underserved and minority women are obtaining recommended mammograms. This program will seek to educate women about the importance of their breast health in the comfort of their own homes, community centers, or churches.
Through the CCCSP, MD Anderson Cooper screened 1,140 women for breast cancer in 2016. Additionally, over 8,000 women received information about the importance of early detection of breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 7,000 new cases of breast cancer will be detected in NJ this year and more than 1000 lives will be lost. Nationwide, there is a new diagnosis every three minutes and a death from breast cancer every 13 minutes. While advances have been made in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure, early detection still affords the best opportunity for successful treatment. Programs such as the CCCSP help ensure that all women have access to early detection information and options, even poor and medically underserved women.
“We are proud that the Avon Foundation for Women shares our mission and has chosen to support our program. With these funds we will be able to provide women with greater access to breast health information and life saving breast cancer screenings,” said Generosa Grana, MD, director of MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper.
Since 1993, the Avon Foundation has awarded more than $72.4 million through 1,700 grants to 249 community-based breast health programs across the United States, including the CCCSP at MD Anderson Cooper. These programs are dedicated to educating underserved women about breast cancer and linking them to early detection screening services.
The Avon Foundation for Women and Breast Cancer Crusade
The Avon Foundation for Women, an accredited 501(c)(3) public charity, was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women; and, today, is the world’s largest corporate-affiliated philanthropy focused on issues that matter most to women. The Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, which launched in 1992, has placed Avon and the Avon Foundation for Women at the forefront of the fight against breast cancer; today, Avon is the leading corporate supporter of the cause globally. Avon breast cancer programs in 58 countries have donated more than $815 million for research and advancing access to care, regardless of a person’s ability to pay. Avon awards funding to beneficiaries ranging from leading cancer centers to community-based grassroots breast health programs to support breast cancer research and access to care. The Crusade has enabled more than 18 million women globally to receive free mammograms and breast cancer screenings, educated more than 100 million women about breast cancer, and funded promising research into the causes of breast cancer and ways to prevent the disease.
The Avon Foundation raises funds for the Crusade through the sale of Avon “Pink Ribbon” products, and through events such as the U.S. Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, which is the Avon Foundation’s largest fund-raising event. Visit www.avonfoundation.org for more information.
The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program
The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program is administered by Cicatelli Associates Inc. to support community-based, non-profit breast health programs across the country. The Fund’s National Advisory Board selected the MD Anderson Cooper Camden County Cancer Screening Project as one of 52 grant recipients nationwide in the 2017 cycle of Avon Breast Health Outreach Program grants. These organizations were chosen based on their ability to effectively reach women, particularly minority, low-income, and older women, who are often medically underserved.
To learn more about the Avon Foundation for Women, call 1-866-505-AVON or visit www.avonfoundation.org, where you can access free printable Breast Health Resource Guides in English and Spanish.
For information or to register or support the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer events, visit www.avonwalk.org or call 1-888-540-WALK.
MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper
Cooper University Health Care and MD Anderson Cancer Center — a world-renowned cancer center – partnered in 2013 to create MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper. MD Anderson Cooper physicians adhere to the philosophy, process, and guidelines set by MD Anderson in Houston, Texas, and patients receive the same proven practice standards and treatment protocols provided at MD Anderson. Disease-site specific multidisciplinary teams consisting of physicians, nurses, and other clinical specialists work together to provide cancer patients with advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies, access to a wide range of groundbreaking clinical trials and dynamic patient-physician relationships. A full complement of support services provides complete, compassionate care for our patients.
For more Information about the Camden County Cancer Screening Project at MD Anderson Cooper
For more information on the Camden County Cancer Screening Project at MD Anderson Cooper, please call Virgemena Lopez at 856-968-7092. For more information about breast cancer, contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 or www.cancer.org, or the National Cancer Institute at 1-800-4-CANCER or www.cancer.gov.
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Media Contacts:
Kristen Clonan
Avon Foundation for Women
Kristen.Clonan@avonfoundation.org
(212) 282-6797
Wendy A. Marano
Public Relations Manager, Cooper University Health Care
marano-wendy@cooperhealth.edu
Office: 856.382.6463