By Dave Bonnerup, Hometown Health

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a perfect opportunity to reflect on the disease that is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer in American women.

Two interesting statistics from the American Cancer Society:

One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime.

About 1,910 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed among men in 2010.

For most women, mammography provides the best way to find breast cancer at an early stage, when treatment is usually the most highly successful.

A mammogram is a low-dose breast X-ray that can detect many changes that are too small or too deep to feel. Mammograms are considered safe, quick and relatively painless. Annual mammograms are recommended for all women aged 40 and over. To schedule an appointment for a mammogram, please call 507-377-6349.

Health insurance usually pays for an annual mammogram and free or inexpensive mammograms are available for low-income women who do not have health insurance. Albert Lea Medical Center participates in the Sage Screening Program to provide mammograms to those without insurance; contact our Health Information Center at 507-379-2046 for more information.

On behalf of Albert Lea Medical Center and Naeve Health Care Foundation I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who donated to Project Pink and to those who attended the gala last month. Project Pink is a collaborative effort by the medical center, the foundation, Naeve Hospital Auxiliary, and the community to purchase of state-of-the-art full-field digital mammography equipment for area women. The new equipment is scheduled to be installed in December.

Thanks to the generous community support of Project Pink we are able to continue the legacy of quality local health care that started over 100 years ago.

Dave Bonnerup is the development director at Albert Lea Medical Center.