Even Super Woman Gets Cancer

There are too many SW Washington residents going without these days.  Thousands of people may have qualified for free health insurance and others may not have qualified and purchased their own insurance plan.  Then there are those trapped in the "donut hole" where they make too much money to qualify for free insurance and make too little to afford individual plans.

It's these people who are going to suffer the most in the future.  As the "working poor" their struggle to maintain a family, an income, and stability is constantly threatened.  On top of that, the Washington Health Care Authority (HCA) suspects 266 women in this category will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year alone, and without health insurance.  Their survival rate is significantly altered compared to the state 95% 5 year survival rate due primarily to not catching the cancer soon enough.  If only they had regular screenings!  That, on the other hand, can be done at no cost to these women.

The Breast, Cervical, and Colon Health Program (BCCHP) was designed 20 years ago to provide preventative cancer screenings for the uninsured with preventing cancer cases and decreasing cancer mortality rates in mind.  Since the program's infancy, breast cancer survival rates in the state of Washington have increased by ten percent (85 - 95%).  Today we continue our preventative screenings in addition to diagnostic procedures and cancer treatment at no cost to patients.  There is a way to prevent cancer and it starts with routine screenings.  Now, working women, aka Super Women, can live longer, healthier lives.