Breast Cancer Awareness street campaign reaches 20+ NJ cities
Invasive breast cancer will affect about 1 in 8 women in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society.
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Everything else can wait: that's the major takeaway from Wednesday's statewide breast cancer campaign led by PINK Breast Center.
For the fourth year, the street campaign will reach over 20 cities to stress early detection and awareness. The Army of PINK, the survivors, were there to drive the message home, along with other speakers.
Survivor Janelle Adams hopes attendees walk away knowing to be their own health advocate.
"I was actually misdiagnosed for two years because I'm young, Black, Puerto Rican, from an urban area," said Adams. "No one listened to me. I went to like all the best hospitals in New Jersey, and they all told me you're too young for a mammogram, it's not cancer. It's this."
She says her body showed atypical signs, complicating the process.
"My symptom wasn't a lump, it was just a rash," said Adams.
Survivor Jessica Uribe was first diagnosed in 2021, and it took her by shock.
"Does not run in my family, I thought I was a healthy 40-year-old woman, you know," said Uribe. "You know, that's when you're supposed to get your first mammogram is when you're 40. That's exactly what I did."
Invasive breast cancer will affect about 1 in 8 women in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. The disease claims the lives of roughly 1 in 43 people.
"It really is that baseline mammogram that's going to set you up for success should there be something there," said ImageCare Radiology CEO Andreia Lima.
ImageCare is a partner of PINK Breast Center.
"We have state-of-the-art equipment, and we also use AI for all the right reasons," said Lima. "So we're going to catch that potential tumor or area of concern much quicker."
"It's not a death sentence anymore," said survivor Yakima Deloatch. "We've come so far in health, so far in medicine. So we have to stay on top of our preventative measures, our routine, testing."
