For Immediate Release Contact: Vicky Agnew at 843-792-0376 or
agnew@musc.edu MUSC Hollings Cancer Center Receives $250,000 from Avon Foundation for Breast Cancer Program Grant to Enhance Patient Navigation Program for Medically Underserved Women Charleston, SC, (Nov. 8, 2007) – Hollings Cancer Center (HCC) recently received $250,000 from the Avon Foundation. The grant will enhance HCC’s Breast Cancer Patient Navigation Program for medically underserved women in need of diagnosis and treatment. The program was established in 2005, also with a grant from the Avon Foundation. “We are thankful for the continued support of the Avon Foundation and the Walk for Breast Cancer Program because we have a great many medically underserved women in South Carolina,” said Anthony Alberg, PhD, Director of Hollings Cancer Center’s Prevention and Control Program. “Our patient navigation program enhances the Center’s ability to provide breast cancer treatment and care to women, regardless of income or location.” Hollings Cancer Center’s state-of-the-art breast cancer navigation program addresses the unmet needs of underserved women who are at risk for and/or have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Linked to the HCC Mobile Health Unit and breast cancer clinics, the program follows women from screening through diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. The program ensures access to breast health services and information, improves the health care experience and supports timely delivery for early detection and treatment of breast cancer. Also, it provides the infrastructure necessary to bridge the gap to outreach services available to the underserved population. The grant to Hollings Cancer Center, announced at the Walk for Breast Cancer in Charlotte, N.C., was one of several awarded by the Avon Foundation to support outreach efforts in the Carolinas. About Hollings Cancer Center Hollings Cancer Center offers state-of-the-art diagnostic capabilities, therapies and surgical techniques and has multidisciplinary clinics that involve surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation therapists, radiologists, pathologists, psychologists and many other specialists seeing patients under one roof. Multidisciplinary care is provided in disease specific clinics such as thoracic, breast, head & neck, genitourinary, gastrointestinal, hematological, and pediatric cancers. Hollings Cancer Center is the largest academic-based cancer program in South Carolina. The Hollings Cancer Center is currently a developing National Cancer Institute designated cancer center and has more than $35M in cancer research funding. More than 1,000 people are currently participating on a cancer clinical trial at HCC. For more information, please visit www.hcc.musc.edu. About MUSC Founded in 1824 in Charleston, The Medical University of South Carolina is the oldest medical school in the South. Today, MUSC continues the tradition of excellence in education, research, and patient care. MUSC educates and trains more than 3,000 students and residents, and has nearly 10,000 employees, including 1,300 faculty members. As the largest non-federal employer in Charleston, the university and its affiliates have collective annual budgets in excess of $1.3 billion. MUSC operates a 600-bed medical center, which includes a nationally recognized Children's Hospital and a leading Institute of Psychiatry. For more information on academic information or clinical services, visit www.musc.edu or www.muschealth.com. #### |
