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By Komen Denver, March 2, 2010 2:01 pm

No matter our background or culture, every woman is unique and different. So, when it comes to our health and how we care for ourselves, not all women can be approached the same way. For more than a decade the Denver Metropolitan Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® has provided education, access and invaluable life-saving services to some of Colorado’s most underserved populations by hosting the Multicultural Conference.

This year’s conference had an amazing turn out of 300+ vibrant people from different ethnic backgrounds. The conference featured culturally appropriate workshops aimed at specific ethnic groups, informational sessions with medical professionals and food and entertainment – also offered the opportunity to understand our similarities and differences, share information, learn more about breast health care and meet women of diverse cultures and backgrounds.

The Multicultural Conference is sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the Women’s Wellness Connection and the Comprehensive Cancer Program.

Other members of the Conference’s planning committee included: the Asian Pacific Development Center, the Breast Cancer Network of Strength, the Center for African American Health, Clínica Tepeyac, the Colorado Cancer Research Program, the Colorado Asian Health and Education Promotion, the Deaf Community, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Jewish Family Services, Native American Cancer Research, the Philippine Nurses Association, Salud y Vida, and the Thai Buddhist Temple.

Take a look at images from the Multicultural Conference on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/komendenver

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By Komen Denver, January 25, 2010 1:40 pm

Late last year the U.S. Preventive Screening Task Force set off a firestorm of controversy when it announced that routine mammograms weren’t necessary for women in their 40s and that women between the ages of 50 and 74 only needed to get screened every other year.

Well, thankfully, the discourse and pressure from women’s groups, organizations like Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, doctors and lawmakers worked. The Senate just approved an amendment to the health-overhaul bill that effectively nullified the Task Force’s guidelines and promised mammogram coverage for women starting at age 40. And, the House voted an impressive 426 – 0 for a resolution saying the guidelines shouldn’t be used by insurers to deny coverage for routine screening.

Here’s a recent Wall Street Journal article that gives a comprehensive update. Check it out.

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By Komen Denver, December 28, 2009 11:12 am

At the Denver Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® we have high expectations for 2010; we think it’s going to be a GREAT year! Our hearts are full of hope and optimism!! But, we’d like to remind everyone that we still need your help and that there is still plenty of time to give generously to the cause.

As part of your New Year’s resolution, we hope that you will join us in our fight against breast cancer by making your tax-deductible year-end gift today The simple fact is that the needs in our community are outpacing the dollars the Komen Denver Affiliate has to provide assistance. The fact is that despite being able to give more than $2.8 million to 35 different organizations throughout our service area during this past year, there were more than $1 million in requests we were unable to consider.

Nicole Davis and Daughter Abigail (Courtesy of Sandy Puc' Studios)

Please help us continue to be able to provide assistance and education to women across Colorado, no matter their age, race or economic situation. Women like Nicole Davis, who just last year, at the age of 25 and a brand new mom, was diagnosed with breast cancer. And women like 63-year-old Jeanette Oxelson, who, because she was uninsured at the time she discovered the lump in breast, spent critical months being turned away by “the system” until finally, by the grace and good luck of her “angels” (and her own dogged determination to not take “no” for an answer, especially when her life was on the line!!), received a grant from the Affiliate to be treated at the Caritas Clinic.

The difference you can make: $100 could pay for one mammogram or one day of post-surgery home health care; $250 ($20 per month) could cover five clinical breast exams; $500 ($41 per month) could provide five diagnostic ultrasounds; and $1000 could allow us to provide 10 mammograms for those who might otherwise go without. Of the funds raised by the Affiliate, 75 percent stays in our local community and is awarded to nonprofits providing breast cancer education, screening, treatment, and support services for medically underserved individuals. The remaining 25 percent funds international breast cancer research.

Make your tax-deductible year-end gift today by visiting www.komendenver.org and clicking on the “Donate Now” button.

We thank you for your support and generosity.

Happy New Year from the Denver Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

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By Komen Denver, August 18, 2009 10:18 am

In 2005 the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Denver Affiliate created a program for young women to increase awareness about the  importance of breast health. This program is known as the Young Women’s Program. The program was also created to educate young women of the importance of early detection of breast cancer in women ages 18 – 34. The mission of the Young Women’s Program is to — educate and empower young women to take an active role in their own breast health, by reaching out to them through outlets which play a major role in their life.

There are four main focus areas of the young Women’s Program. They include Komen Konversations, College Outreach, Information Distribution to Spas and Boutiques, and Bookmark Distribution.

The Komen Konversation’s piece provides educational opportunities to marginalized and hard to reach ethnic communities including the African-American, Asian, and Latina communities in various settings within our 12-county service area (e.g. in homes, businesses, places of worship, etc.). Volunteers are trained to teach, contact and locate venues, and host culturally sensitive breast health and breast cancer education sessions in the community.

The focus for the outreach to colleges encompasses collaborating with college health centers, health fairs, and student organizations to get breast health information into colleges and to educate students on breast health. This program is very similar to Komen Konversations but will focus on the college campuses in our community.

The Distribution to Boutiques & Spas program focuses on distributing breast health information and other breast materials to select businesses in our service area; preferably to small, independently owned boutiques and spas which target younger women.  The information is displayed on counters, windows, and/or fitting rooms to educate customers on breast health.

The idea behind the Bookmark Distribution is very simple. The Denver Affiliate can order free bookmarks through Komen National. The bookmarks are distributed to local libraries, including those on college campuses and in underserved communities, on an ongoing basis throughout the year (quarterly). Also bookmarks could be distributed to small, locally owned bookstores in our service area.

To learn more about the Young Women’s Program or to become a volunteer, please contact Amarilis Viera-Simoes,
Director of Education & Marketing, at 303.744.2088 ext. 302 or AViera@komendenver.org.

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By Komen Denver, August 11, 2009 3:35 pm

Joni Hunter with her scooter, Little Pinkie

By Joni Hunter

I started getting mammograms when I turned 40 and have had one ever year. Six years later during a routine mammogram, the radiologist came into the exam room with X-rays in hand. He wanted to know my family history regarding cancer. I had an aunt on my father’s side that died from breast cancer, my sister had anal cancer and my father died four months earlier from leukemia. He showed me the pictures and the area of concern. I had a needle biopsy a day or two later, and it was positive. Since it was the Christmas season (Christmas Eve to be exact), we decided to do a lumpectomy the first week of the new year.

Telling my mother was the hardest thing I ever had to do. It was worse than me dealing with the fact that I had breast cancer. My mom and dad had been married for 50 years, and my family was still missing him. I had the lumpectomy, and it was a few days before I was to get my stitches out when my doctor called and informed me that the margins were not clear enough and had to reschedule another surgery. After that, plus eight weeks of radiation, I was on the road to physical recovery.

The best thing about my story is that soon I will be 55 and celebrating 10 years of being a survivor. I owe it all to getting mammograms every year and early detection. My tumor was up against my rib cage and was the size of a pea. The doctors told me it would have taken 10 years for it to be found during a breast exam. I think about how my life would be now if I never got a mammogram. The thing about it is once they have a picture, they have a base line to go by and can tell if there is something unusual happening. Before it gets big.

I tell everyone I know “early detection and mammograms saved me.” I do Denver Race for the Cure every year with my sisters. It’s an awesome thing.