CBCC provides breast cancer screening services and breast health education to women who do not have health insurance or other means to pay for mammograms.
Breast and cervical cancers are the leading causes of death among Georgian women. The First Lady of Georgia dedicates much of her time to the work in health care. She chairs the reproductive Health Council under the Ministry of Labor, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia. The Council made it possible to establish the first breast cancer screening center in Tbilisi. At this center, women between the ages of 40-69 who live in Tbilisi receive free mammograms and consultations. The aim of the program is to ensure access for the target population, make the services acceptable and appropriate to the needs of eligible persons, maximize early detection of breast cancer, and therefore, help reduce mortality from breast cancer. Also, First Lady is Founder and Director of SOCO, a charitable organization, which works to improve reproductive health and child welfare in Georgia (www.soco.ge).
CBCC Executive Director Amari Sokoya Pearson-Fields, MPH, and Medical Director Jennifer Eng-Wong, MD, MPH, hosted the meeting. They shared with Roelofs valuable information about breast cancer prevention activities, patient support mechanisms, funding challenges, and creative ways to raise awareness about importance of annual breast screenings. Dr. Levan Jugheli, the Medical Director of the Tbilisi Breast Cancer Screening Center, and wife of the American Ambassador in Georgia accompanied first lady at CBCC. They, also, met with representatives of March of Dimes, the Susan Comen Foundation, and visited the National Institutes of Health (NIH) during this visit to the United States.
First Lady Roelofs hopes that the Tbilisi Breast Cancer Screening Center can serve as a blueprint for similar facilities in rural areas of Georgia, where the need for cancer screening services for women is urgent.