MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center at West Virginia University will offer free clinical breast exams twice this fall – first at the WVU Healthcare Expo and again at the Cancer Center.
The Cancer Center will offer breast exams from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 16 as part of the Expo at the Morgantown Mall. The Cancer Center exhibit will be located at the JC Penney entrance next to Garfield’s Restaurant and Pub. Walk ups are welcome.
Bonnie’s Bus, WVU Healthcare’s digital mammography center on wheels, also will be there to offer screening mammograms. The Bus will be parked outside of Garfield’s. The mammograms will be billed to insurance, Medicaid or Medicare if available. Mammograms for women who do not have insurance will be covered by the West Virginia Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program or through special grant funds. A physician’s order is required to be screened, but women who visit the Cancer Center exhibit can obtain one there. Additionally, anyone who already has a doctor’s order for a mammogram can be screened on Bonnie’s Bus at the Expo by pre-registering at 877-287-2272.
Clinical breast exams will also be offered from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 24 at the Cancer Center clinic, at no charge.
A clinical breast exam is a physical exam of the breast performed by a healthcare provider to check for lumps or other changes as defined by the National Cancer Institute.
“A clinical breast exam should be part of every woman’s regular medical checkup at least every three years starting at age 20,” Jame Abraham, M.D., director of the WVU Comprehensive Breast Care Program, said. “When a woman turns 40, she should also begin having yearly mammograms. The combined screenings complement each other and increase the chances of early detection of breast cancer.”
Breast imaging will be available at the Betty Puskar Breast Care Center the evening of the exams, if a follow-up mammogram or ultrasound is warranted for a participant. The mammograms and ultrasounds are not free, but billing to insurers is provided. Women who lack insurance may be matched to government or nonprofit charities.
Advance registration is required for the clinical breast exams at the Cancer Center. Please call Pam Foley at 304-598-4500 to register.
Anyone interested in having a mammogram only that evening can call the same number for an appointment at the Betty Puskar Breast Care Center.
For information on the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center see www.wvucancer.org.
