Tour For The Cure

Oxford Journal, June 16, 2010

Fifty-three percent of Nova Scotian women are having a regular mammogram. That sounds impressive but, about half of women in this province are not.  The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation (CBCF) has set an ambitious goal to have 85 per cent of eligible women in Atlantic Canada regularly screened for breast cancer by 2010.

The CBCF launched its second annual Tour for the Cure on April 29. A 50-foot long pink bus will visit 110 communities throughout Atlantic Canada over the summer with potentially lifesaving information.  That busload of information was brought to Oxford on June 11.

Organizers contacted Oxford Frozen Foods Ltd. to set up in its Main Street parking lot. Company spokesperson Trish Catto said the company didn’t hesitate to say yes.  “Over 80 per cent of our workforce is women and we are well aware of how important breast cancer awareness is to them,” she said. “It fit in perfectly with our Health and Wellness Program, living healthy and promoting healthy living.”

The Tour for the Cure is an education program to significantly increase breast screening rates among women in the region. It provides interactive displays and information about breast health as it relates to breast screening and breast cancer.

CBCF has set a goal to have 85 per cent of eligible women in Atlantic Canada regularly screened for breast cancer by 2010.

Breast cancer continues to be the most frequently diagnosed cancer in Atlantic Canadian Women.