Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center

TREATMENT PLANNING MODELS FOR TARGETED RADIATION THERAPIES USING NEW ACCELERATOR TECHNOLOGY

FUNDING REQUEST TO EXPAND EARLY DETECTION OUTRECHCANCER SCREENINGS AND PATIENT ED

COMMUNITY PROJECT FUNDING/CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING - CONSTRUCTION - ADDRESS: 4950 ESSEN LANE PROJECT DIRECTOR: HEATHER JOHNSON PHONE: 225-215-1288 EMAIL: HJOHNSON@MARYBIRD.COM WEBSITE: WWW.MARYBIRD.ORG GRANT FUNDS: $775,000 AS A COMMUNITY SERVICE, MARY BIRD PERKINS CANCER CENTER HAS DELIVERED NO COST, COMMUNITY-BASED SCREENINGS TO THE MEDICALLY UNDERSERVED SINCE 2002 IN AN EFFORT TO ADDRESS THE HIGH MORTALITY RATE FROM CANCER. WE SCREEN FOR FIVE CANCER TYPES (BREAST, COLORECTAL, SKIN, ORAL CAVITY AND PROSTATE) ON OUR MOBILE MEDICAL CLINICS THAT DRIVE INTO HIGH NEEDS NEIGHBORHOODS IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE COMMUNITY NEEDS INDEX. WE PROVIDE A PATIENT NAVIGATOR FOR EACH PARTICIPANT WITH AN ABNORMAL FINDING TO ENSURE ADEQUATE FOLLOW-UP UNTIL RESOLUTION OF ANY FINDING. MBPCC’S PROGRAM TARGETS ADULTS WHO LACK ACCESS TO CANCER SCREENINGS INCLUDING VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES AND LOW-INCOME RESIDENTS WHO HAVE BARRIERS TO HEALTHCARE SUCH AS LACK OF TRANSPORTATION, IRREGULAR SOURCES OF MEDICAL CARE, LOW HEALTH LITERACY AND IRREGULAR WORK HOURS. OFTEN BECAUSE THIS POPULATION LACKS ACCESS TO CANCER SCREENINGS, THEY DO NOT RECEIVE THE RECOMMENDED SCREENINGS AND CANCERS ARE DETECTED TOO LATE FOR LONG-TERM SURVIVORSHIP. LOUISIANA HAS SOME OF THE HIGHEST CANCER MORTALITY RATES IN THE NATION, ALTHOUGH OUR INCIDENCE RATE IS SIMILAR TO THAT OF OTHER STATES. MUCH OF THIS IS ATTRIBUTED TO THE LATE STAGE OF THE DISEASE AT DIAGNOSIS – WHICH IS MOST OFTEN SEEN IN OUR TARGETED POPULATION. OUR EARLY DETECTION PROGRAM TRAVELS SEVERAL TIMES EACH WEEK TO MEDICALLY UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT OUR SERVICE AREA. RECENTLY, WE HAVE NEARLY DOUBLED THE SIZE OF OUR SERVICE AREA TO NOW COVER 36 OF LOUISIANA’S 64 PARISHES. THIS MAKES THE NEED FOR AN ADDITIONAL MOBILE CLINIC AS WELL AS UPGRADES TO OUR CURRENT MOBILE CLINICS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR THE SCALABILITY OF THE PROGRAM. OUR PROJECT WILL PURCHASE AN ADDITIONAL MEDICAL MOBILE UNIT TO DELIVER CANCER SCREENINGS FOR THE MEDICALLY SERVED THROUGHOUT OUR AREA. IN ADDITION, IT WILL UPGRADE THE TECHNO LOGY ON THREE (3) MEDICAL MOBILE UNITS TO ALLOW FOR TELEHEALTH CAPABILITIES.