Wise Women gaining ground fighting breast cancer in Southwest Georgia

DAWSON — The Cancer Coalition of South Georgia recently wrapped up the first year of its Wise Women Rural Breast Cancer Outreach Education and Screening Program in Terrell County, created to increase breast cancer screening and education among low-income, uninsured women ages 40-64.

The program has come a long way, but the fight is not over. Officials with the Cancer Coalition said work will continue in Terrell County and that staff will also reach out to uninsured women in Lee County this year.

“Many Southwest Georgia communities suffer disproportionately from breast cancer as compared to the rest of the state. The Wise Women program was designed to increase access to breast cancer screening by eliminating financial barriers faced by uninsured Terrell County women,” said Kimberly Scott, director of the Cancer Coalition’s Center to Reduce Cancer Disparities.

Scott said women in Terrell County suffer the third-highest incidence rate of breast cancer in the state, and that data also show Lee County women suffer one of the highest death rates from breast cancer in the state.

“Even those women living in more affluent communities are not immune to this disease. Those without health insurance face some of the same barriers to preventive health services as lower-income, uninsured women,” Scott said.

Health care officials have long stressed that regular mammogram screenings can help find breast cancer at an early stage, thereby making treatment more successful.

Throughout the first year of the program, Scott reported that 63 uninsured women received mammograms at no cost. She said the Cancer Coalition is able to provide these services through its partnership with Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital and the Southwest Public Health District, the latter of which includes the Terrell County Health Department.

“All of our organizations are committed to doing all we can to help uninsured women get these lifesaving tests, as well as treatment when needed,” Scott said.

Brenda Greene, the deputy director for the health district, said Public Health is involved with the fight by linking eligible women to the providers who can give them the services they need. While Wise Women is specific to Terrell and Lee counties, it is a mission the district, as well as the Cancer Coalition, aim for in other counties in Southwest Georgia.

The Cancer Coalition helps the health district, and that organization helps the coalition, resulting in a partnership benefiting the women in Southwest Georgia.

“We are increasing the number of women screened, for sure,” Greene said. “The whole objective is to screen women and catch them early. (The more screenings that takes place, there is increased) likelihood we catch them earlier.”

Greene said if a women is already a patient at a federally qualified health center, she can contact her provider if she is due for a screening. If a women is insured but has a high deductible, there is a chance she could be eligible. If an exam or screening is abnormal, a women is linked to a provider for further testing. If cancer is diagnosed, they may be eligible for Medicaid coverage if they are indigent, she said.

“We determine what they are eligible for and link them,” the deputy director said. “We have a wonderful partnership with the Cancer Coalition and other health care providers in trying to promote breast cancer screening.”

Scott said the Cancer Coalition’s navigators help eliminate barriers preventing many women from getting a mammogram.

“We take time to talk to women to help alleviate any concerns they may have about breast cancer screening. We also provide transportation assistance to women who would not otherwise be able to travel to Albany for their mammogram,” Navigator Tarccara Hodge, who works in the community to reach women one-on-one, said.

Officials said more than 700 Terrell County women received screening promotion messages through community outreach and other sources, while nearly 80 women attended small group educational sessions held at faith-based organizations, community-based organizations and businesses.

Funding for the first year of the program was provided through a grant from Georgia Access to Care, Treatment, and Services (ACTS) Breast Cancer Grant Program on behalf of the Georgia State Office of Rural Health. A grant from another Atlanta-based organization called “It’s The Journey” will allow the Wise Women program to continue, officials at the Cancer Coalition said.