By RICK COUSINS Correspondent

The Houston branch of the Susan G. Komen Foundation recently announced grants totaling $2.2 million dollars to research and local community health organizations including the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston which received $254,997.

Deana Gehring, a program manager at the medical branch explained how this funding will impact Galveston County.
“It will provide breast health care for uninsured, financially eligible women,” she said. “Women will be able to schedule a well-women appointment at one of our clinics. During their appointment, each woman will be scheduled for a screening mammogram on our mobile mammogram van or at UTMB.”

The Komen Foundation was founded by Nancy G. Brinker, who promised her sister, Susan G. Komen, who later died of the disease, that she would put an end to breast cancer. The foundation has funded more than $800 million in research and provided more than $1.7 billion in funding for screening, education and treatment since it launched in 1962.

In addition, the grant will work with the local faith community to make additional mammograms possible for the poor.
“We plan to identify local pastors and key congregation ‘stakeholders’ from the high-risk areas of Galveston and Brazoria counties who are willing to work with our staff to identify, financially screen and schedule female church members who qualify for an annual screening mammogram,” Gehring said. “Once the groundwork has been laid, we will work to promote a Sunday screening event and help ensure that a sufficient number of women are scheduled on the van on a designated Sunday.”

The medical branch provides a “treatment navigator” to help women through the screening and procedures as well as to help with the paperwork and seeking of funding sources.

Although this grant was just issued, the medical branch has been working with the foundation since 2005 and has received a total of $5.3 million since then.

“This funding has enabled thousands of local uninsured women to receive breast health education, screening mammograms, diagnostic procedures and patient navigation services,” Gehring said. “This patient population has traditionally been difficult to serve and many of these women might have otherwise fallen between the cracks.”

The medical branch also helps fund the foundation’s efforts by holding a charity race annually.

Rick Cousins can be reached at rick.cousins@galvnews.com.