Alexandria, Va., March 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On March 25, representatives of the Prevent Cancer Foundation® and its Congressional Families® Program will visit Comadre a Comadre, recipient of a $25,000 grant providing breast cancer education and navigation to Hispanic/Latina women across New Mexico.
Comadre a Comadre is a culturally and linguistically designed project, training trusted, community peer breast and cervical cancer survivors through Platicas, addressing barriers to screening and navigating patients to screening appointments. They aim to reach over 850 individuals through health fairs and one-on-one and group classes.
Lisa McGovern, Executive Director of the Congressional Families Program, and Erica Childs-Warner, Managing Director, Research, Education and Outreach, will represent the Prevent Cancer Foundation, joined by Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (NM-03). Yolanda (Yoli) Sanchez, PhD, Director and CEO of the University of New Mexico (UNM) Comprehensive Cancer Center will welcome the group. Rep. Leger Fernández, herself a breast cancer survivor treated at the University of New Mexico, will receive a special pin from Comadre a Comadre as part of its Pin-A-Sister® program.
“As a breast cancer survivor, I know first-hand the power of community during the long and difficult months of treatment and recovery,” said Rep. Leger Fernández. “The work Comadre a Comadre does for New Mexico Latinas is vital for our community. They deserve and have earned this national recognition and $25,000 grant from the Prevent Cancer Foundation to continue providing essential services for Latinas in New Mexico. With early detection and improved education for all women, we bring passion to our fight against breast and cervical cancer.”
"We are proud to be here with Congresswoman Leger Fernández to highlight how Comadre a Comadre is meeting the health needs of New Mexican women, and especially call attention to their work to get Latina women screened for breast and cervical cancers,“ said Lisa McGovern. “Our shared goal is to prevent cancer and detect it early for better outcomes.”
The Prevent Cancer Foundation’s community grants program currently supports 12 projects across the U.S. dedicated to increasing cancer prevention and early detection in rural and urban communities across the U.S. The 2023 projects were selected through a competitive grants process with each program receiving a one-year, $25,000 grant. The awarded projects focus on increasing education, risk reduction, vaccination and screening for breast, colorectal, liver, lung, and skin cancers, as well as cancers caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), which includes cervical cancer. Projects emphasize using best practices and all can be adapted for other communities.
The Prevent Cancer Foundation is proud to support Comadre a Comadre in their work to reach this community and improve access to lifesaving screenings.
About the Prevent Cancer Foundation®
The Prevent Cancer Foundation® is the only U.S. nonprofit organization focused solely on saving lives across all populations through cancer prevention and early detection. Through research, education, outreach and advocacy, we have helped countless people avoid a cancer diagnosis or detect their cancer early enough to be successfully treated.
The Foundation is rising to meet the challenge of reducing cancer deaths by 40% by 2035. To achieve this, we are committed to investing $20 million for innovative technologies to detect cancer early and advance multi-cancer screening, $10 million to expand cancer screening and vaccination access to medically underserved communities, and $10 million to educate the public about screening and vaccination options.
For more information, please visit www.preventcancer.org.
About the Congressional Families® Program
The Congressional Families® Program is a nonpartisan effort to increase the public’s understanding of cancer prevention and early detection. Families of Senate, House, Cabinet, Supreme Court and the Diplomatic Corps are invited to work within their respective constituencies to educate the public. The Congressional Families Program offers educational events, materials and resources to equip its members to bring the message of cancer prevention and early detection back to their communities.
For more information, please visit www.congressionalfamilies.org.
About the University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center
The University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center is the Official Cancer Center of New Mexico and the only National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center in a 500-mile radius. Its more than 136 board-certified oncology specialty physicians include cancer surgeons in every specialty (abdominal, thoracic, bone and soft tissue, neurosurgery, genitourinary, gynecology, and head and neck cancers), adult and pediatric hematologists/medical oncologists, gynecologic oncologists, and radiation oncologists. They, along with more than 600 other cancer healthcare professionals (nurses, pharmacists, nutritionists, navigators, psychologists and social workers), provide treatment to 65% of New Mexico’s cancer patients from all across the state and partner with community health systems statewide to provide cancer care closer to home. They treated almost 15,000 patients in more than 100,000 ambulatory clinic visits in addition to in-patient hospitalizations at UNM Hospital. A total of nearly 1,855 patients participated in cancer clinical trials testing new cancer treatments that include tests of novel cancer prevention strategies and cancer genome sequencing. The more than 123 cancer research scientists affiliated with the UNMCCC were awarded $38.2 million in federal and private grants and contracts for cancer research projects. Since 2015, they have published nearly 1000 manuscripts, and promoting economic development, they filed 136 new patents and launched 10 new biotechnology start-up companies. Finally, the physicians, scientists and staff have provided education and training experiences to more than 500 high school, undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral fellowship students in cancer research and cancer health care delivery.
