Breast cancer screenings, education coming to Merced County

A merger of two regional Susan G. Komen affiliates will allow Merced County to begin benefiting from the programs and services provided by the nonprofit breast cancer organization, the group said.

Merced is one of nine counties being brought into the service area of Susan G. Komen Northern and Central California, which combined Susan G. Komen Sacramento Valley and Komen Central Valley, according to a statement released Tuesday.

The organization will partner with local health clinics and mobile mammography organizations to provide breast cancer outreach, education and screenings for “under-served, uninsured and undocumented women” in more Central Valley communities, said Kelly MacMillan, executive director of the nonprofit.

“Women of the most need and most under-served – those are women that Komen works with,” MacMillan told the Merced Sun-Star. “That’s how we will save lives.”

Merced County has a high rate of late-stage breast cancer diagnosis, especially among Latina women, which diminishes the outlook for survival, MacMillan said,

“The key is to get women screened early and annually,” she said.

Susan G. Komen now serves 29 counties throughout northern and central California, the statement said. The new counties being served are: Merced; Madera; Mariposa; Alpine; Inyo; Kings; Lassen; Mono; and Tulare.

The goal for the organization is to reduce breast cancer deaths in the United States 50 percent by 2026 by investing in research to prevent and cure the illness, the statement said.

Every year, Susan G. Komen holds fund-raising events such as A Race For the Cure. The group says 75 percent of net funds go toward community programs and 25 percent toward the organization’s national research program.

For more information go to www.komennccalifornia.org/race/.

This story was originally published March 14, 2017 at 7:00 PM with the headline "Breast cancer screenings, education coming to Merced County."