Brooklyn, New York, February 2011--The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program has awarded a $50,000 one-year grant to Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center to increase awareness of the life-saving benefits of early detection of breast cancer. It is the first year that the program has received funding from the Avon Foundation for Women to support its work on this important health issue.
Kingsbrook's Breast Health Program will educate Central Brooklyn women and refer them to low-cost or free mammograms and clinical breast exams in their own communities. The vital program will also provide needed services to many women who are under or non-insured in the community.
Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in the United States, and the leading single cause of death overall in women between the ages of 40 and 55. According to the American Cancer Society, 14,610 new cases of breast cancer will be detected in New York State this year and over 2,400 lives will be lost. Nationwide, there is a new diagnosis every three minutes and a death from breast cancer every 14 minutes. Closer to home in Central Brooklyn, breast cancer has the highest death rate among our female residents, yet women in our primary service areas seek and receive mammograms for breast cancer at a rate well below the 85% target. This translates into a mortality rate for Central Brooklyn women of 34 deaths per 100,000 from breast cancer, compared with 26 deaths per 100,000 throughout New York City. While advances have been made in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure, early detection still affords the best opportunity for successful treatment. Programs such as Kingsbrook's Breast Health Program help ensure that all women have access to early detection information and options, even poor and medically underserved women.
"Our breast cancer initiatives have helped thousands of women in our community over the years, "states Enid Dillard, Director of Marketing & Public Affairs. "We are proud to continue our work in partnership with the Avon Foundation, and we are extremely honored that they chose to support us in our ongoing prevention efforts."
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Since 1993, the Avon Foundation has awarded more than 1,425 grants to community-based breast health programs across the United States, including Kingsbrook's Breast Health Program. These programs are dedicated to educating underserved women about breast cancer and linking them to early detection screening services.
The Avon Foundation for Women and Breast Cancer Crusade
The Avon Foundation for Women, an accredited 501(c)(3) public charity, was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women and today is the world's largest corporate-affiliated philanthropy focused on issues that matter most to women. Avon philanthropy focuses its funding on breast cancer research and access to care, efforts to reduce domestic and gender violence, its
women's environmental movement to nurture nature, and efforts to provide relief and recovery in times of major natural disasters and emergencies. Since the
Avon Breast Cancer Crusade launched in 1992, Avon breast cancer programs in more than 50 countries have raised almost $700 million for research and advancing advance access to care, regardless of a person's ability to pay. In addition to receiving generous support from Avon Products, Inc., and its sale of Avon "pink ribbon" products, the Foundation raises funds through a variety of events and walks, such as the
U.S. Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, which is the Foundation's largest fund-raising source.
The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program
The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program is administered by Cicatelli Associates Inc. to support community-based, non-profit breast health programs across the country. The Fund's National Advisory Board selected Kingsbrook's Breast Health Program as one of 125 new grant recipients nationwide in the 2011 cycle of Avon Foundation Breast Care Fund grants. These organizations were chosen based on their ability to effectively reach women, particularly minority, low-income, and older women, who are often medically underserved.
For more Information
For more information about Kingsbrook's Breast Health Program, please call 718-604-5201. For more information about breast cancer, contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 or www.cancer.org, or the National Cancer Institute at 1-800-4-CANCER or
www.cancer.gov. To learn more about the Avon Foundation for Women, call 1-866-505-AVON or visit
www.avonfoundation.org, where you can access free printable
Breast Health Resource Guides in
English and
Spanish. For information or to register or support the
Avon Walk for Breast Cancer events, visit
www.avonwalk.org or call 1-888-540-WALK.
Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, celebrating its 86th year, is a teaching Medical Center, dedicated to meeting the health needs of one of Brooklyn's most culturally diverse communities. Kingsbrook continues to implement programs and services that respond to the vital health needs and concerns of the community at large.
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