STATE POLITICS & POLICY | Ga. Health Department Launches $1.2M Program To Increase Breast Cancer Screening, Treatment
[June 11, 2008]

The Georgia Department of Community Health has launched a $1.2 million initiative that will provide grants to groups offering breast cancer education, screening and treatment to low-income and minority women, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The program will provide grants ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 for screening projects and up to $300,000 for treatment programs, according to the Journal-Constitution. Groups applying for grants must be able to demonstrate "strong, comprehensive partnerships with various health care providers to provide breast cancer services to underserved populations," the health department said. The department will accept grant applications through July 21.

More than 1,000 women die annually of breast cancer in the state, James Peoples, executive director of the health department's Office of Health Improvement, said. The department is "empowering community-based organizations to make a significant contribution to the reduction in breast cancer disparities," Peoples said.

Breast cancer is the sixth-leading cause of death among women in the U.S., according to the Journal-Constitution. In addition, the disease is the second-most common cause of cancer-related deaths among white, black, Asian and American Indian women, health department Commissioner Rhonda Medows said. Medows said that although breast cancer-related deaths have decreased recently among both white and black women, "African-Americans continue to suffer the greatest burden of [breast cancer], to be diagnosed later and are more likely to die from breast cancer."

Winston Gandy of the Piedmont Heart Institute said that the initiative "will stimulate organizations to educate those who need to be informed" about breast cancer, adding that the $1.2 million "will be far-reaching." Gandy added, "There is a significant difference among the races in the level of awareness of disparities. Some patients need to know to bring a friend or spouse with them to the doctor's, to know what questions to ask, to prod the doctors, and this is a good start" (Hendrick, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 6/10).





The information contained in this publication reflects media coverage of women’s health issues and does not necessarily reflect the views of the National Partnership for Women & Families.

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