Will visit Franklin Oct. 19; Harrisville Oct. 21 and 22

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Bonnie’s Bus, a digital mammography center on wheels, will visit Pendleton and Ritchie counties next week, offering digital mammograms and breast care education to women. A service of WVU Healthcare, Bonnie’s Bus will be at Pendleton Community Care in Franklin from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 19 and at Ritchie County Primary Care in Harrisville from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 21 and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 22.

The mammograms are not free, but billing to insurers is provided.  Women who lack insurance may be matched to government or nonprofit charities. A physician’s order is needed for a mammogram. For a Bonnie’s Bus appointment, call Pendleton Community Care at 304-358-2355 or Ritchie County Primary Care at 304-643-4005.

During its first year on the road in 2009, the 40-foot long Bonnie’s Bus travelled 9,000 miles, visited 20 counties and provided nearly 400 mammography screenings. The goal for 2010 is to make at least 60 site visits throughout West Virginia with a focus on communities that have high breast cancer mortality rates.

Bonnie’s Bus represents a statewide partnership of women’s groups, clinicians, public health professionals and other community leaders working to help reduce the number of deaths from breast cancer in West Virginia.

Made possible by a generous gift from West Virginia natives Jo and Ben Statler to WVU’s Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center, Bonnie’s Bus is operated by WVU Hospitals. The bus is named after Mrs. Statler's late mother, Bonnie Wells Wilson.

For information on Bonnie’s Bus, see www.hsc.wvu.edu/mbrcc/bonnie.