Fauquier Health Hosted Pink Out Mammography Nights for Breast Cancer Awareness

During the month of October, Fauquier Health partnered with Fauquier County Government and Public Schools to host its first series of "Pink Out" mammography events. The events spanned two weeks in October where after hours appointments were offered to government and school system employees. These Pink Out events were created to provide ease of access when it came to scheduling a screening mammogram. The events took place after hours on October 18th and October 25th. Altogether, 30 screening mammograms were provided to women who work in Fauquier County.

In addition to providing screening mammograms, attendees were also invited to join various educational presentations on women’s health from providers, including Dr. Victoria McDonald, OB/GYN, Dr. Kearn Ghuman, DO, Primary Care, and Mandy Colegrove, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner. Free chair massages were offered by a Wellness Center massage therapist as well as delicious refreshments, pink hair tinsel extensions, and raffle prizes that made the evening fun for all attendees. Raffle items were donated by local community organizations including Carter and Spence, Latitudes Fair Trade Store, Appleton Campbell, Village Flowers, Mary Kay, Black Bear Bistro & Brick Oven, Cast Iron Craft House, and more.

According to Sarah Cubbage, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, “Fauquier Health hopes to expand mammography event offerings such as these. Our team feels strongly that breast cancer awareness should not be limited to just one month. The level of demand for the Pink Out events was a very successful start. With the recent welcoming of a second mammography machine, we would like to see these events turn into a more frequent offering. We are grateful to our community partners for helping us make these events a success.”

Pink Out events are an important focus for Fauquier Health to initiate as the rise in breast cancer rates continue to grow year after year. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the U.S., behind skin cancers. In fact, the ACS puts the average risk as a one in eight chance that a woman will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. And according to the World Health Organization, breast cancer is now the most common cancer globally, claiming 12 percent of new cancer cases. Breast cancer is also the second leading cause of cancer death in women, superseded only by lung cancer.

There is, however, some positive news. Those death rates have been steadily dropping. Statistics show that the overall death rate from breast cancer decreased by one percent each year from 2013 to 2018. This decrease can be attributed to several factors, including better treatment for those with cancer, early detection, and advanced technology to detect cancer at early stages. 

Mammograms help detect breast cancer earlier than waiting for symptoms to appear. That’s an incredibly important weapon in the fight against breast cancer because that early detection can result in an more effective treatment and a dramatic increase in survival. To schedule a mammogram today, call our central scheduling line at 540.316.5800 or visit us online at FauquierHealth.org/imaging.