JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
Do you know someone who has been affected by breast cancer? For most individuals the answer is yes. The risk factor in the U.S. for breast cancer is one in eight for every woman and is the second most common type of cancer in women.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, during which the annual campaign to raise awareness of risks, treatment, screening and the value of early detection takes place.
“At Joint Base San Antonio, we use Breast Cancer Awareness Month as a way to allow patients the opportunity to get screenings they may not otherwise have and to offer them information,” said Tech. Sgt. Leona Rodriguez, JBSA-Randolph radiology clinic noncommissioned officer in charge. “People can go to Google and by the time they’re done, they may not have the most accurate or best information. We want to provide them with better tools and recourses so they can have the knowledge they need.”
In 2018, it is estimated that more than 300,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer.
Despite the risk factors, most women survive breast cancer if detected and treated during early stages.
“Early detection is huge,” Rodriguez said. “About 30 percent of breast cancer is in the upper outer quadrant, which is very close to your lymphatic area. Basically, if you have breast cancer, it wants to grow so it’s going to hook onto a blood vessel system in order to grow or metastasize.
“What we want to do is catch it in a much earlier stage so maybe the patient won’t have to get a mastectomy or lumpectomy. They may only have to get some radiation or chemotherapy treatment. The earlier it’s detected the less procedures or treatment you’d have to go through.”
In support of the month, JBSA-Randolph will host a 5K fun run and 9K race 8 a.m. Oct. 13 at Heritage Park.
To raise continuous awareness throughout the month medical facilities at all three Joint Base San Antonio locations will offer walk-in mammograms. Walk-in times at each location are:
JBSA-Randolph clinic: Every Friday
JBSA-Lackland/Wilford Hall: Oct. 5 & 19, 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
JBSA-Fort Sam/Brooke Army Medical Center: Oct. 26, 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.