It’s the Journey Grants $40K to Northside Hospital Breast Care Program
More cases of breast cancer are treated at Northside Hospital than at any other community hospital in the Southeast. Part of the National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP), the hospital offers a complete range of services for patients including education, genetic counseling, imaging, radiation oncology, surgery, support, rehabilitation and more – covering every aspect of breast care.
It’s the Journey, Inc. is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to strengthening Atlanta’s breast cancer community, by raising money and awareness for local Atlanta organizations that focus on breast cancer education, research, early detection, awareness an support services, as well as the unmet needs in the breast cancer community. The organization produces the Atlanta 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer, which is what funds the grant program. Since 2003, It’s the Journey has awarded more than $7.4 million to local organizations. This is the fifth year that Northside has benefitted from the organization, with grants totaling more than $118,000.
“Northside is so grateful to It’s the Journey for choosing to benefit our breast cancer programs, once again,” said Patti Owen, director of oncology services, Northside Hospital. “This money will help us to educate more women, of all ages, about the importance of early detection and screening, in hopes that they will be able to prevent potential disease.”
Of the grant money awarded to Northside in 2011, nearly $20,000 will be used to provide free mammograms and other breast diagnostic services to qualified women living in Hall, Dawson, Lumpkin and other outlying counties. Services will be provided at select Northside Hospital imaging centers across North Atlanta.
Approximately $6,000 will be used to provide breast health education to young women through Check It Out, a collaborative effort between Northside and the Greater Atlanta Hadassah. This program teaches young women how to perform proper breast self-examinations and promotes early detection and the education of risk factors. In 2010, the program reached nearly 2,000 young women.
The final $15,000 will go to the hospital’s Hereditary Cancer Program, which offers genetic testing and counseling for patients, who may be at risk for genetically influenced cancers including breast, ovarian and colorectal cancers. Approximately 10% of all breast cancers are hereditary.
It’s the Journey free mammogram flyer (PDF)
Click here for more information on Northside's Breast Care Program.
