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MOULTRIE — Unfortunately, cancer in the South has become almost as traditional as collard greens and Wednesday night church suppers. And it is also one tradition that I’m sure we would all like to see fade into the past. this disease transcends all ethnic, economic or social groups and seems to give us more in common with each other than almost anything else in our community. I don’t believe you can find one soul who has not been touched, in some way, by cancer. in my personal experience, my mother’s immediate family was completely laid low by the disease, except for one of her sisters, and my father has lost a sister and two brothers. Cancer has been a steady, if unwanted, “constant” as I grew up seeing its affects on my family. but my story is so common here that it isn’t even shocking anymore. yet for the many loved ones that our community has lost to cancer, there are many who are survivors. the Annual Circle of Friends Survivors’ Breakfast had about 107 in attendance last year, including my aunt, who is a breast cancer survivor. along with her, in our community, there are about 200 women who are survivors of this form of cancer. “Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, aside from skin cancer. according to the American Cancer Society (ACS), an estimated 230,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed among women in the United States this year. Today, there are about 2.6 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States,” states the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month website. October has you may know is Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) and has been since 1985, when the first program took place. according to the NBCAM website, this organization, a partnership of public service organizations, professional medical association and government agencies, has worked together for the past 26 years to promote breast cancer awareness, share information and provide greater access to screening services to the community a large. the partnership, initially, testified before a United States Congressional committee about the need for widespread access to mammography. “Mammography screening remains the best available method to detect breast cancer early. However, no medical test is always 100 percent accurate, and mammography is no exception. Research is under way to improve the technology to lead to better accuracy and to create new technologies,” also states the NBCAM website. at Colquitt Regional Medical Center, the mammogram department works hard to make all of its patients feel at ease and comfortable while they are having the test done, said Vickie Tucker, registered mammographer. “I think we have a good atmosphere back here,” she said. but you can’t help but feel comfortable when you are in their clinic because the women have a easy going way about them and definitely put some humor into what could potentially be an uncomfortable situation. according to the CBS News website, in 2009, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force concluded that women at average risk for breast cancer don’t need mammograms in their 40s and should get one just every two years starting at 50. please don’t tell these ladies this because everyone of them including their director, David Spence, believes that is not the best advice to take. “Mammography, in fact, does save lives,” Spence said. Tucker said the American Cancer Society recommended that a woman have one done every year after the age of 40. “between the ages of 35 and 40, they recommend you have your first baseline mammogram,” she also said. Colquitt Regional Medical Center has a “state-of-the-art” digital machine, which brings up the image on the computer so that no film has to be developed, said Registered Mammographer Cissie Rowell. Tucker also added that the image could be sent directly to the doctor’s workstation immediately. “It’s really nice. We love it and our patients love it too,” Tucker said. Rowell said this was the best tool they have to fight breast cancer. “It’s a really fast procedure. You’re in and out once you get back to our department,” said Tucker. Rowell added that the actual exam only takes five minutes to do with the average patient. “We don’t have to take as many films as we did before,” said Tucker. she said they only take four images, now, for the basic screening and there is only minor discomfort. Susan Bennett, registered mammographer, said a patient should remember not to wear deodorant or power on the day they are coming to have it done. Rowell added that they kept deodorant in their department for their patients to use after the screening. “Early detection is the best defense,” said Rowell. with this advice firmly in my mind, I will be scheduling a mammogram for myself later this year and I won’t mind if it takes longer than five minutes because the ladies in the mammography department at CRMC are definitely great to spend time with. seriously, go in, get it done and consider it a visit with girlfriends. another great department, the oncology department headed up by Brian Elliott, offers many services to cancer patients including chemotherapy, hematology, and management of cancers including breast, colon, lung, ovarian, prostate, testicular, leukemia, and Hodgkin’s. “to care for someone is different than to care about someone. to care for is to provide services, such as meet the patient daily, provide professional and competent clinical services, timely injections, adequate communication and necessary information. to care about them is to take them into your heart and make them a part of your family,” said Elliott. Elliott also headed-up the Breast Cancer Awareness Month kick-off for CRMC and the Moultrie Oncology Support Team (M.O.S.T.) last year. the event was held the first Sunday in October in the social hall of the first Assembly of God Church. with the pink chairs that were already a part of the social hall’s decor and this being Elliott’s home church, there did not seem to be a more appropriate place to have the event. the event will be held again, this year, on Saturday, Oct. 29, at the church. “We’re celebrating but we’re celebrating you,” he told the attendees last year as he thanked everyone for coming. the signature pink of breast cancer awareness was carried out through beautiful fresh flowers and a refreshment table with elegant looking treats, which was the centerpiece of the room. Elliott told the audience that the hospital had catered the event and he also asked the volunteers of M.O.S.T. to raise their hands and he thanked them for their help in setting everything up. “may this be a joyful time, a joyful event,” he said as he gave a blessing over the celebration. As the women visited with each other and enjoyed the snacks, a bluegrass band, playing old-time hymns, entertained them. the group included Elliott and his eight-year old daughter, Anna Beth. in speaking with some of the ladies at the event, I gained a little perspective and some words of wisdom on being a breast cancer survivor. I thought if they could give some insight and advice from “the inside” of this disease, it might help someone who was newly diagnosed. Lynn Acuff, who has been a survivor for three years, said, “You think of the strength that you get from God to get you through it.” the “strength” she was talking about is her husband, bill Acuff, who she said has been a wonderful caregiver and she couldn’t have made it through without him. she said it was important to have a good caregiver. “You go through phases. You go through the shock. Then, it’s ‘why me?’ Then, you get angry. Then, you realize when you’re sitting in the oncology center and looking at the other women, that you have a tie,” she said. another survivor, Betty Sledge, who has been a breast cancer survivor since 2002, said she was a retired nurse who used to give chemotherapy at the hospital. she said she was just going for a routine mammogram when the cancer was found and she said she took care of it immediately, having her breast removed. she said it was a must for a woman to get her mammograms and, if, something was suspicious, to follow through with her doctor immediately. “Don’t you let anything that you think is okay go because it might not be okay. … It’s also so important, when you have had cancer, to follow through with all of the appointments that your doctor has given you,” she said. she also added that the ladies in the mammogram department were wonderful and she felt comfortable with them. “the girls here are like your sisters,” she said. Sledge said she goes about every six months to let them check her out. “so far, so good,” she said. Linda N. Bivins, although not a breast cancer survivor herself, gave her perspective as the administrative assistant for the oncology department at the hospital. “I love it. I love my job,” she said in a very heartfelt voice. she said in working with the cancer patients, she recognized the ones who were down and out and had such empathy for them. “When they are so sick and feeling bad and they cry, we cry too. … I just let them know that we are always there for them,” she said. she said it seemed like many of the patients want to talk about it and it seemed to help them. “We give them hope,” she said. she said Elliott had a way of talking to their patients that reached them through their hearts. “There are all kinds of ways of hope and help for cancer. Especially, breast cancer,” she said. she said that, in her office, she had much information and many pamphlets and she would make time to speak to her patients about the disease at their convenience. “Just call. Just call me at 890-3514,” she said emphatically. she said the medical prognosis for breast cancer was excellent and the doctors in the oncology department at CRMC were very knowledgeable about the latest procedures. she also said that the doctors were really caring and genuinely interested in their patients’ well-being. “Be strong and know that there is help,” she said. in speaking with these women and health care providers, the main through-line was that early detection was the key to surviving this disease. And, early detection can be made through getting your mammograms done when you are supposed to and just being aware of any changes in your body. also, it is important to be aware that breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in women and has no economic or social boundaries. so, when October comes around next year, ladies, take a few minutes to be aware and to…think pink.