Red Rose Program Receives Avon Grant

The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program has awarded a $25,000 one-year grant to Dignity Health - St. Rose Dominican's R.E.D. Rose Program to increase awareness of the life-saving benefits of early detection of breast cancer and provide free breast cancer screenings.

It is the fourth year that the program has received funding from the Avon Foundation for Women to support its work on this important health issue.

The R.E.D. Rose program at St. Rose educates the community on breast cancer awareness and refers women and men under 49 who lack adequate health care coverage or the financial means to pay for the following services: clinical breast exams, mammograms, ultrasounds, surgical consultations and biopsies. The program also provides information and referral as well as financial assistance to those undergoing treatment.

Since January 2006, the R.E.D. Rose program has provided nearly 1,224 clinical breast exams, more than 2,373 mammograms, nearly 1,741 breast ultrasounds, and more than 462 biopsies to the uninsured women in our community.

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society, 235,030 new cases of breast cancer will be detected in the U.S. this year and 40,430 lives will be lost. Nationwide, there is a new diagnosis every three minutes and a death from breast cancer every 13 minutes. While advances have been made in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure, early detection still affords the best opportunity for successful treatment. Programs such as St. Rose’s R.E.D. Rose Program help ensure that all women have access to early detection information and options, even poor and medically underserved women.

“We are proud that the Avon Foundation for Women shares our mission and has chosen to support our program. With these funds we will be able to reach a lot more women with these life-saving screenings,” said Holly Lyman, Director of the Barbara Greenspun WomensCare Centers of Excellence.

Since 2000, the Avon Foundation has awarded $76.2 million through more than 1,600 Avon Breast Health Outreach (BHOP) grants to community-based organizations across the United States, including Dignity Health - St. Rose Dominican’s R.E.D. Rose Program. These programs are dedicated to educating underserved women about breast cancer and linking them to early detection screening services.