Catherine Barnes Women’s Health Fair - April 4th and 6th

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among adult women, and the second leading cause of death from cancer among women. Screening can find cancer at an early stage, when treatment is most effective and successful. With that in mind, the Shoals Community Clinic, in partnership with the UNA College of Nursing, Tri-State Center for Breast Health at ECM East will host the annual Catherine Barnes Women’s Health Fair on April 4th and 6th from 9am to 2pm at the clinic at 309-B Handy Homes in Florence.

The fair will offer free cervical and breast exams and free mammograms, with some restrictions, for women age 40-64 who do not have health insurance or a primary health care provider. This is a part of the clinic’s Well Woman Project, and is supported by the Alabama Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. This program is part of a nation-wide initiative launched by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) which has offered over 9 million cancer screenings and provided follow-up treatment to over 200,000 women. This program has benefited thousands of women in the state who would not have had access to this preventative care otherwise. Because of this program, hundreds of lives of women in Alabama are saved each year.

The Catherine Barnes Women’s Health Fair is named after one the clinic’s founding officers and first directors, Catherine Semmes Barnes who was an inspiration to women fighting this disease. Experts estimate that about one out of every eight women born today will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some time during her life. Factors that can increase a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer include age, family history, breast density, obesity after menopause, and alcohol use.

For more information or to set up an appointment for the health fair, call the Shoals Community Clinic at (256) 760-4713.