The Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center Foundation encourages women to schedule preventive screenings.
Screenings can save hundreds of lives and keep thousands of women from getting cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes or other chronic diseases.
Women who do not receive appropriate cancer screenings face a greater risk of late-stage cancer detection and death. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among females in Colorado, killing more than 600 women annually. However, if breast cancer is detected early, 98 percent of those diagnosed survive at least five years. Likewise, when cervical and colorectal cancers are diagnosed early, 90 percent and 88 percent of women respectively survive at least five years.
Most health insurance covers breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screenings at no cost to the individual, and resources are available statewide for free breast and cervical cancer screenings. The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment’s Women’s Wellness Connection program offers free breast and cervical cancer screenings to eligible women.
To learn about the Cancer Prevention & Early Detection Program in our area and/or schedule a screening, call Brenda Gentile, HRRMC Foundation community health worker, at (719) 207-2088.
To learn more about cardiovascular disease and diabetes, visit heart.org or diabetes.org.
Local resources for colorectal cancer screenings for women and men 50 years or older may exist in your community. Talk to your primary care provider about what colorectal cancer screening option is right for you.