‘Pink Ribbon Month’ Brings Mammogram Discounts at SRVBIC, Breast Cancer Awareness Events for Santa Clarita Valley Women

By Stephen K. Peeples

October is Breast Cancer Awareness or Pink Ribbon month in the United States, where the American Cancer Society reports more than 40,000 women die of breast cancer each year.

In the Santa Clarita Valley, the Sheila R. Veloz Breast Imaging Center (SRVBIC) at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia plans special promotions and educational events throughout the month.

They’re designed to help get the word out to local women about the center’s affordable breast health care services.

“Our commitment to the women of the Santa Clarita Valley is that no woman should skip their annual mammogram for lack of ability to pay,” said Donna Ferguson, R.N., MBA, and Henry Mayo’s director of outpatient surgery, the SRVBIC, the gastrointestinal staff and the Infusion Center.

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Ferguson said an annual mammogram remains the best way to detect breast cancer in its early stages.

While many women are insured and mammograms are covered, many other women are uninsured and can’t afford the procedure.

During October the SRVBIC will provide breast cancer screening mammograms to local uninsured women at a reduced fee of $160. The center did the same thing in May.

RELATED: Sheila R. Veloz Breast Imaging Center Offers $160 Mammograms in May

The discounted fee includes all hospital charges and a complete reading by a Henry Mayo radiologist whose specialty is mammography.

If an uninsured patient still can’t afford the fee, the SRVBIC will provide assistance in seeking grant or other funding to help pay it.

“We’ve got ways to make it work,” Ferguson said. “We don’t want anyone to skip their mammograms.”

SRVBIC Fundraising Helps Subsidize ‘Unfunded Mammograms’

“Many community business owners help us raise the money for those unfunded mammograms,” Ferguson said. Among the Santa Clarita businesses participating this year are Cobblestone Cottage, StoneFire Grill, Rattler’s Barbecue, Dr. Raskin and Advanced Dermatology, and Jersey Mike’s subs.

Those and many other retail outlets throughout the SCV will sell pink ribbon pins for $5 in October, with proceeds going into the mammogram-funding kitty. See the list of stores here.

“Participation in these will help fund state-of-the-art equipment and ensure women in our community have access to superior technology for breast cancer detection,” Ferguson said.

RELATED: See KHTS’ Google Maps virtual tour of the SRVBIC

Cobblestone Cottage at 24335 Magic Mountain Parkway in Valencia will feature special Brighton Breast Cancer Awareness jewelry all month long. The retailer will donate $5 from each Brighton “Power of Pink” bracelet to the SRVBIC, and Brighton will donate another $5 to a breast cancer-related organization.

Upcoming awareness-building and fundraising events include the “Eat, Drink and Raise Funds” day at StoneFire Grill, 23300 Cinema Drive in Valencia, on Tuesday, Oct. 1. The restaurant’s owners will donate a generous portion of the day’s revenue to the SRVBIC.

Next on the October schedule is the 10th annual “Bras for a Cause” auction staged by Soroptimist International of Santa Clarita Valley. This year’s event is themed “Bras on Broadway” and set for Sunday, Oct. 6 from noon to 3 p.m. at The Oaks Grille at Tournament Players Club, 25550 Heritage View Lane in Valencia.

The Soroptimists will donate to the SRVBIC a portion of the proceeds from the event’s $65 admission fee (which includes food, a complimentary beverage and Broadway-style entertainment) and sales of the “blinged-out” bras, gift baskets and more. The event also benefits local nonprofit Circle of Hope. Get more info and tickets here.

Rattler’s barbeque restaurant at 26495 Golden Valley Road in Centre Pointe (off McKeon Drive) will donate a portion Tuesday, Oct. 15’s  proceeds to the SRVBIC.

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The next night, Wednesday, Oct. 16, it’s “Bingo or Bust” from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Valencia Hills clubhouse, 24060 Oak Vale Drive in Valencia. The buy-in ($35 prepaid, $45 at the door) includes two bingo cards, refreshments and chances to win prizes. Players can purchase additional cards for $5 each or three for $10. “Bingo or Bust” proceeds also benefit the SRVBIC. For reservations, call 661-200-1200.

“(Use of) the clubhouse is donated, we get the food and wine donated, so all of the proceeds from those tickets go to the breast imaging center,” Ferguson said. “We put that money into a fund to help pay for mammograms and procedures for women without finances.”

Finally on Nov. 1, the Advanced Dermatology and Cosmetic Medical Care Group will donate part of its day’s proceeds to the SRVBIC. Get more details by calling 661-254-3686.

SRVBIC’s Breast Cancer Outreach and Education

Mindy Burgess, SRVBIC’s breast health nurse navigator, has a date to speak the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center on Market Street in Newhall on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 1 p.m.

Oma Timberlake, SRVBIC’s breast cancer testimonial speaker for 2013, has shared her own breast cancer journey to encourage women to get annual mammograms and inspire other breast cancer survivors. A new SRVBIC direct-mail piece features Timberlake’s story and the services available at the center.

“We just had a luncheon for all the testimonial speakers last week,” Ferguson said. “Each year we have a new speaker and they all feel like they’re part of a group of women with a special bond. They call each other ‘sisters.'”

Doing the ‘Pink Glove Dance’ for Breast Cancer Awareness

Beyond the Santa Clarita Valley, SRVBIC is participating in the national “Pink Glove Dance” breast cancer awareness campaign sponsored by Medline, a large distributor of hospital supplies.

For the second year, the center will submit a video of doctors and staff members all wearing pink gloves, interspersed with meaningful clips of a patient’s journey through breast cancer. The footage is to be set to the music of “Brave” by Sara Bareilles.

“We included some real breast cancer patients, survivors, who wanted to participate by showing their journey. So there’s going to be a few little clips of one of the women going to the (SRVBIC) and getting the news of her mammogram that shows cancer, and then showing her at the doctor’s office, and in the Infusion Center getting chemotherapy, and in the Radiation Center getting her radiation.”

The video’s in post-production now. “We have to submit ours by Oct. 5, and it should be available for viewing in late October at the official Pink Glove Dance website,” Ferguson said. “Those are all really amazing videos. Ours was a lot of fun to do, and hopefully it also includes a little bit more of a serious message.”

Thinking Pink in October and All Year Around

And on Friday, Oct. 11, everyone at Henry Mayo and the SRVBIC will “think pink” on “Hospital Pink Day.” All doctors, nurses and staff will wear pink at work, and make information available to all patients about breast cancer and the importance of making and keeping mammogram appointments.

An “educational mixer” for the Henry Mayo staff only during Breast Cancer Awareness Month will allow doctors to update staff members on California’s new Dense Breast Law.

“(The law) requires breast imaging centers to notify patients if they have a dense breast, and there’s a chance (a) mammogram won’t be as effective – they may need to (have an) ultrasound,” Ferguson said.

“Henry Mayo, the SRVBIC, all the staff, employees, physicians and administration like to celebrate the fact that we’re so active in breast cancer awareness,” she said. “October may be special because more people wear pink, but we do this all year long because that’s our business.”

The Sheila R. Veloz Breast Imaging Center is located on the Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial campus at 23929 McBean Parkway, Suite 101, Valencia 91355. The appointments phone is 661-253-8822.

Find out more about the SRVBIC at the center’s website.

For more information about mammograms, visit the Centers for Disease Control website.

For more information about Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, call 661-253-8005 or visit www.henrymayo.com.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

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