WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Susan G. Komen will announce almost $1.6 million in new community grants to eight breast cancer organizations serving the National Capital Region. The announcement will take place Tuesday, March 31 during the Susan G. Komen Washington, D.C. Race for the Cure® Media Kickoff Event marking the official start of activities leading up to the 26th D.C. Race for the Cure® May 9 on the National Mall. The evening event will feature a therapeutic yoga class and is open for the first time to members of the media.
The latest set of grants totaling more than $1.58 million focuses on reducing rates of late-stage diagnosis and mortality with an emphasis on eliminating breast cancer in the nation’s capital, an area that has among the highest incidence and death rates from breast cancer in the country. The types of services funded include mammography screenings for Latinas, improving the breast cancer continuum of care for Vietnamese woman, and a mass media breast cancer educational campaign targeted at African-American women. The grants were given out based on three priorities: screening and reducing fragmentation; provider education; and public education.
Shyrea Thompson, senior advisor to the CEO for special initiatives, said that Komen’s grants are needed more than ever. “The breast cancer mortality rate in the community constitutes a health crisis,” said Thompson. “Susan G. Komen is working to reduce the horrible statistic by funding local programs that address the socioeconomic and cultural issues that serve as barriers to care.”
Currently, the mortality rate from breast cancer in D.C. is 40 percent higher than the national average. In addition, breast cancer incidence is 20 percent above national averages. Washington has the highest rate of late-stage diagnosis, when breast cancer is most difficult to treat.
The evening event will be co-hosted by Komen grantee Smith Center for Healing and the Arts, a nonprofit health, education, and arts organization in Washington D.C. Its mission is to develop and promote healing practices that explore physical, emotional and mental resources that lead to life-affirming changes for people affected by cancer. Programs offered include: support groups, art workshops, yoga, stress reduction and meditation, cooking and nutrition. Attendees of the event will be able to participate in one of its featured services, a therapeutic yoga class for cancer survivors.
Since its inception in 1990, funds raised from the D.C. Race for the Cure® have provided more than $35 million for over 300 community grants to local programs in the National Capital Region, aimed at low-income, minority and uninsured women in areas where breast cancer rates are the highest. Currently, Komen has 19 active grants for community education and treatment centers helping to provide breast health services, treatment assistance and patient support services in the National Capital Region – which includes northern Virginia, the District and Prince George’s and Montgomery counties in Maryland. In addition to community grants, Komen has invested more than $30 million in over 120 grants to breast cancer researchers at local institutions.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide. In the United States, one case of breast cancer is diagnosed every two minutes, and one woman will die of breast cancer every 13 minutes. A lack of health insurance and living in lower-income areas are both associated with lower survival rates among breast cancer patients, as well as the presence of other illnesses, unequal access to care and disparities in treatment.
The announcement will take place tomorrow evening at the Smith Center for Healing and the Arts located at 1623 U Street NW (between 17th and 16th Streets NW) in Washington, D.C. Check-in begins at 6:00 and the class will start at 6:30PM and go until 7:30PM. For more information or to RSVP, please email Kiki Burger at kburger@komen.org or 310.469.4602.
| National Capital Region Community Grants Active in 2015: |
|
Granted in 2015 |
| Arlington Free Clinic |
| From Screening to Survivorship - Enhancing Continuity of Care for Low Income Arlington Women |
| Arlington, VA |
| Breast Care for Washington |
| Community Screening for Medically Underserved Women |
| Washington, DC |
| CASA de Maryland |
| Latino Cancer Prevention and Control Program |
| Prince George’s County |
| African Women’s Cancer Awareness Association |
| Increase Your Knowledge, Decrease Your Risk |
| Silver Spring, MD |
| Capital Breast Care Center |
| Mass Media Educational Campaign for Mammography Screening in the Nation's Capital |
| Washington, DC |
| Korean Community Service Center of Greater Washington |
| Breast Cancer Campaign for Asian-Americans |
| Annadale, VA |
| Prevent Cancer Foundation |
| Celebremos la vida & Campeonas contra el cáncer de seno: Breast Cancer Education & Screening |
| Arlington County, VA |
| Boat People SOS, Inc. |
| HAPP-Breast Health |
| Falls Church, VA |
|
Continuing through from 2014 |
| Capital City Area Health Education Center Inc. (CC AHEC) |
| DC Pink Divas |
| Washington, D.C. |
| Mary’s Center for Maternal & Child Care, Inc. |
| Mary’s Center Breast Health Program |
| Washington, D.C. |
| Mobile Medical Care |
| Community-Based Breast Health Outreach, Education and Screening |
| Bethesda, MD |
| Prince William Hospital |
| Increase low income, under/uninsured women’s participation in breast screening and follow-up care |
| Manassas, VA |
| The Red Devils, Inc. |
| Treatment Transportation for Prince George's County Breast Cancer Patients |
| Baltimore, MD |
| Smith Center for Healing and the Arts |
| The Patient/Provider Education Project (PPEP) |
| Washington, D.C. |
| Vietnamese Resettlement Association |
| Breast Care Outreach and Education |
| Falls Church, VA |
|
Continuing through from 2013 |
| Alexandria Neighborhood Health Services, Inc |
| Access to Breast Health: Education, Screening and Treatment to Improve Patient Outcomes |
| Alexandria, VA |
|
|
|
Continuing through from 2012 |
| Primary Care Coalition of Montgomery County, Inc. |
| National Capital Area Breast Health Quality Consortium: Developing a Reliable System for High-Quality Breast Health Care for the National Capital Area’s Low-income, Uninsured Women |
| Silver Spring, MD |
|
Continuing through from 2011 |
| Adventist HealthCare |
| Navigate to Health: Rapid Referral Program |
| Rockville, MD |
|
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National Capital Area Special Initiative Grants |
| Doctors Community Hospital (DCH) |
| The Prince George’s County Continuum of Breast Care |
| Prince George’s County, MD |
About Susan G. Komen®
Susan G. Komen is the world’s largest breast cancer organization, funding more breast cancer research than any other nonprofit while providing real-time help to those facing the disease. Since its founding in 1982, Komen has funded more than $847 million in research and provided $1.8 billion in funding to screening, education, treatment and psychosocial support programs serving millions of people in more than 30 countries worldwide. Komen was founded by Nancy G. Brinker, who promised her sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would end the disease that claimed Suzy’s life. Visit komen.org or call 1-877 GO KOMEN. Connect with us on social at ww5.komen.org/social.
