Breast Cancer Prevention for Native American Women

By Deborah Thomas, Staff Writer

The M. D. Anderson Circle of Sisters program and the Center for Research on Minority Health helped sponsor a visit to M. D. Anderson for Native American women from the Alabama-Coushatta Reservation. During the visit the women received instruction on breast cancer prevention and free mammography screening. They also spent time learning about the role nutrition plays in cancer prevention, the importance of breast cancer screening, and easy ways to relieve stress and stay healthy.

Deborah Scott, of the Native American Health Care Coalition, says, "In the native community breast cancer is a big problem, because many women are diagnosed late." According to The Unequal Burden of Cancer: An Assessment of NIH Research and Programs for Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved, American Indian/Alaska Native women have the lowest incidence of breast cancer yet have the poorest five-year survival rates.

Event Sponsors:
National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD)
Native American Health Coalition
M. D Anderson Health Disparities Research, Center for Research on Minority Health
M. D Anderson Mobile Mammography Program
M. D. Anderson Place of... Wellness

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