$100,000 Donated for Uninsured Women

March 14 2006, Everett — A $100,000 donation to support free mammograms was presented recently to the Washington State Department of Health by the Breast Cancer Prevention Fund.  The charitable donation will support the Breast and Cervical Health
Program and will be used exclusively to provide mammograms for 12,000 uninsured and

underinsured women ages 40 to 64.  These women would otherwise be unable to afford

this essential test for breast cancer.

The mission of the Breast Cancer Prevention Fund is to save lives through education and

breast cancer screening.  The Breast Cancer Prevention Fund was founded in 2004 in

response to the need for affordable mammograms for under-served women in Washington. 

Jim Paton, a retired Everett business owner, is Executive Director of the Fund.

The check for $100,000 was presented to Pama Joyner, program director for the state’s Washington Breast and Cervical Health Program.

When several of his former employees were diagnosed with breast cancer, Paton educated himself about breast cancer, learning that Washington State has the highest rate of breast

cancer in the country.  His concern about the health of his employees, coupled with his impending retirement, led him to explore what he could do to help women — particularly

those with no health insurance.  He was struck by the fact that a mammogram, a simple and effective test for the early detection of breast tumors, was still out of affordable reach to thousands of uninsured and underinsured women.  The solution – providing free or low-cost mammograms – seemed clear, and the Breast Cancer Prevention Fund was born.

The Fund’s website, www.breastcancerpreventionfund.org, provides research-based information on performing a breast self-exam, causes, diagnosis, prevention, and risk factors

for breast cancer, and important information on the efficacy of mammograms.  Also included

are numerous links to other sites, including support and counseling groups, as well as a

request form for uninsured or underinsured women who want a mammogram.

The Fund’s board of directors includes a breast cancer survivor, whose tumor was

discovered through a mammogram.

For further information, contact the Breast Cancer Prevention Fund at P.O. Box 1508,

Everett, WA 98206; 1-866-486-4344; or by email info@breastcancerpreventionfund.org.

The Breast Cancer Prevention Fund is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.