Six breast health education forums hosted by Effingham Health System are part of a record-breaking total of $345,000 the Coastal Georgia affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure has awarded for community services to fund everything from educational programs to screening mammograms.

This brings the total investment in the local community to over $1.3 million dollars since the affiliate’s inception. Determined to save lives and end breast cancer forever, the Coastal Georgia affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure has awarded eight grants to programs providing breast cancer services in the Coastal Georgia area.

One of the recipients is Effingham Health System, receiving funding for a breast health education and screening program.

“Through our grants program, we are able to provide life-saving services to Coastal Georgia residents that might otherwise fall through the cracks”, said Beth Desloges, executive director of the Coastal Georgia Affiliate. “This year we focused our funding on increasing access to care for underinsured women, particularly rural, African-American and Latina populations.”

Effingham Health System will host six breast health education forums at area churches over the next six months, and women in attendance will have an opportunity to receive a free clinical breast exam in addition to information on self-exams and risk factors. Education will be offered in both English and Spanish as needed, and an interpreter will be on hand to assist with questions and family history collection.

“Our mission is to reduce the undetected breast cancers that threaten the women of our community”, said Melissa Waller, community outreach coordinator at Effingham Health System. “There are women out there who have never had an exam, much less a mammogram. We want to be sure that these women get information, and the needed services, regardless of their uninsured status.”

Grant funding is generated through a number of affiliate fundraisers held throughout the year – the largest of which is the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, scheduled for April 13. Up to 75 percent of net proceeds from all funds generated stay in Coastal Georgia to fund programs that address specific unmet breast cancer needs in Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long and McIntosh counties.

For more information about the Coastal Georgia Affiliate or Susan G. Komen for the Cure, call 232-2535 or visit www.komencoastalgeorgia.org.