Pink Aroostook is a county-wide breast health program designed for support, advocacy, education and awareness of breast health issues in northern Maine.
The program is currently funded, in part, by a grant from the Susan G. Komen Maine Affiliate with additional funding from the Jefferson Cary Foundation and the Cary Medical Center Ladies’ Auxiliary.
Pink Aroostook addresses educational needs, especially understanding the risk of breast cancer and the importance of screening, breast cancer recovery issues, and the availability of services and financial support in Maine for the people of Aroostook County. We help by providing information about breast cancer screening, breast health and wellness to women in Aroostook County, connecting people diagnosed with breast cancer to educational, financial and emotional resources and educating Aroostook county women on lifestyle choices that increase their risk of breast cancer.
Pink Aroostook “Survivor Bags,” which include resource books, items of comfort for treatment, wellness and advocacy items, are given to each breast cancer patient that the program reaches. A Breast Cancer Support Group is held in the Chan Center of Cary Medical Center on the first Thursday of each month from 5 to 7 p.m. and all breast cancer patients and survivors are invited to attend.
As additional funding is available, there is a limited patient care fund to assist with immediate financial need for people in active treatment to offset the cost of transportation to and from treatments, or other costs associated with a breast cancer diagnosis.
Thanks to collaborations with organizations such as the Maine Breast Cancer Coalition, the American Cancer Society and the Maine Breast and Cervical Health Program, Pink Aroostook is also able to help connect people diagnosed with breast cancer to local and national resources which may be able to provide financial and emotional support.
The Pink Aroostook program also aims to make more women aware of the Maine Breast and Cervical Health Program (MBCHP). The MBCHP provides free mammograms and pap smears for women who qualify with the hope of increasing early detection of breast cancer for women in Maine.
On a national level, through corporate membership with the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC), Pink Aroostook seeks to help eradicate breast cancer by focusing the administration, U.S. Congress, research institutions and consumer advocates on breast cancer.
The NBCC informs, trains and directs patients and others in effective advocacy efforts. Pink Aroostook coordinator Bethany Zell has been actively involved with the NBCC since 2012 and recently completed the NBCC’s prestigious Project LEAD Institute, an intensive science course for breast cancer advocates which covers the basics of cancer biology, genetics, epidemiology, research design and advocacy. Project LEAD provides a foundation of scientific knowledge upon which participants can strengthen and empower themselves as activists.
“It was truly an honor to be able to learn from renowned research faculty and medical professionals at Project LEAD this past July,” Zell shared. “I know the foundation of my work as a breast cancer advocate has been strengthened substantially as a result of my participation in this course,” she continued.
For more information about Pink Aroostook or to get involved, please email or call Bethany Zell at bzell@carymed.org or 498.1361 or visit www.pinkaroostook.org.
