"Every Woman Counts ... Every Year!" New PSAs Feature Maya Angelou, Eartha Kitt and California Breast Cancer Survivors.

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--Sept. 16, 1998--California Health and Welfare Agency Secretary, Sandra R. Smoley, R.N., Wednesday launched two television public service announcements (PSAs) to encourage low-income California women over 40 to get breast cancer screenings every year.

The PSAs, sponsored by the California Department of Health Services (DHS), feature author/poet Maya Angelou, actress/singer Eartha Kitt (as the voice of cancer) and a diverse group of California breast cancer survivors. Other celebrity supporters include newswoman and breast cancer survivor Faith Fancher; Terry McMillan, author of "How Stella Got Her Groove Back" and "Waiting to Exhale"; and Northern California native, actress Amy Hill.

"When a woman is screened regularly, breast cancer can be found at an early stage," said Smoley. "If the cancer is detected early, when it is still confined to the breast, a woman's chance for survival and choice of treatments are increased enormously."

The first PSA profiles long-term California breast cancer survivors in their daily lives, with Dr. Angelou making a "call-to-action" to women throughout the state. The second PSA is animated and features Ms. Kitt as the voice of breast cancer. Speaking directly to women in English or Spanish, "Dot" explains how breast cancer spreads and becomes increasingly difficult to treat the longer it remains undetected.

Both celebrity women graciously donated their time to the PSAs because of their strong personal commitment to women's health. However, the real heroines are the breast cancer survivors -- the grandmothers, mothers, aunts and sisters, all Women Who Count! ... who, because of early detection, were able to conquer the disease and continue to live rich and fulfilling lives.

This year 19,300 California women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Of those, 4,585 women will succumb to the disease -- that's nearly one every two hours.

Breast Cancer Early Detection Program (BCEDP) has vowed to fight these numbers with its multi-cultural "Every Woman Counts...Every Year!" campaign.

Based on current trends in California, approximately one in seven White, one in ten African American, one in 12 Latina, and one in 13 Asian women will develop breast cancer. African American women die of breast cancer at a higher rate than White women. Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for Hispanic and Filipino women.

Many experts agree that the difference in survival rates comes down to one simple fact: breast cancers are usually not detected at the earliest stages in African Americans, Latinas, as well as low-income, uninsured women because they do not receive regular clinical breast examinations and mammograms.

These exams can detect breast cancer at an early stage when it is most treatable, long before the woman is aware of any lumps or masses.

In response to the rising rate of breast cancer, Governor Pete Wilson signed legislation in 1993 to create the Breast Cancer Act, which created the statewide BCEDP. BCEDP works in conjunction with the California Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (BCCCP).

Under these programs, DHS provides income-eligible women, age 40 and older, with free breast cancer screening. The state's efforts are supported by 14 Breast Cancer Partnerships that are comprised of local health care professionals, breast cancer advocates and survivors, employers, community leaders, businesses and organizations.

The partnerships are aggressively bringing awareness and education programs to the women in their communities, as well as working closely with providers to assure quality services to women.

More than 2,000 providers, including doctors, nurses, hospitals and medical clinics, have provided breast cancer screening, mammography and diagnostic services to women who qualify. To date, these programs have screened more than 150,000 California women.

For more information on the breast cancer partnership in your area or to find out if you qualify for free breast screening services, call 800/511-2300, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.