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A Check-up Could Save a Life

By Alice Kryzan

October 17, 2008 — Today is National Mammography Day, part of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and I'd like to remind women to see their doctors for a check-up. I am making my appointment today. Too many of us can say we have been touched by a disease that will affect an estimated 182,460 women this year; my mother died of breast cancer when she was younger than I am today.

Her cancer might have been treated, but she was afraid to see the doctor until it was too late, until there was nothing any of us could do. Caring for my mother in her last days, I saw firsthand the pain caused by this terrible disease, and have since understood the importance of access to health care. No one should have to suffer this way because she could not afford to have this vital screening done.

Thankfully, there has been much progress made since my mom struggled with the disease nearly 40 years ago. According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer rates are on the decline as a result of an increased awareness that has led to early detection and improved treatment options. We have also seen an increased investment in breast cancer research at the federal and local levels.

Despite these heartening trends, the American Cancer Society estimates that one in eight women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. Aside from some forms of skin cancer, breast cancer remains the most common cancer in women, taking more than 40,000 lives each year. It is the most common cause of death from cancer in Hispanic women and the second most common cause of death from cancer in white, black and Asian women. And, it is also important to note that men are affected as well; nearly 2,000 men will develop this type of cancer this year.

Given the work yet to be done, it is critical that women get screened. The American Cancer Society recommends yearly mammograms starting at age 40 and every woman should learn how to do her own self examinations starting in their 20s.

I know this can be easier said than done. The incidence of women reporting a mammogram within the past year consistently increased in the 1990s to a high of 64% in 2000, but has been slowly dropping since then to around 61% in 2006. What is particularly disturbing is that this percentage drops another 25 percentage points for women with no health insurance. And, another study found that even a small co-payment discourages women from getting screened.

We need to change this system, and we need to change it now. Preventative measures must be encouraged and covered by insurance. We must do more to cover the more than 47 million people who are uninsured, and address the real needs of the millions more who are underinsured.

That will be my charge if elected. But, today, let's all just take a moment on this day, in this month of national awareness, and remind someone we love — a wife, a mother, a sister, a friend — to get checked.

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Paid for and Authorized by Kryzan for Congress