Women in Ripley County benefited last week from a collaborative effort of a group of women spanning two states to combat breast cancer.

The efforts by the SouthEastern Indiana Cancer Health Network, Inc. (SEICHN) based out of Lawrenceburg, St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Kentucky, and the local health department in Ripley County brought a mobile mammography unit to the county last Wednesday, August 3.

Forty area women were able to get a free mammogram, compliments of SEICHN, and were given a free clinical breast exam (St. Elizabeth through a Avon grant) and breast awareness education (SEICHN).

Dr. Adrianne Lane, Greendale area, president of SEICHN along with Dr. Madeleine Martin, Moores Hill, director of SEICHN have worked with the organization for 11 years to bring breast cancer awareness to communities. Both are professors at the University of Cincinnati.

SEICHN is a local Indiana based not-for-profit organization that writes grants for monies to fund cancer screenings and preventative measures. They cover Ripley and the surrounding counties of Dearborn, Franklin, Ohio and Switzerland.

For the Ripley County event, the women secured grants through the Indiana Breast Cancer Awareness Trust and Avon Breast Health Outreach Program to bring the mobile unit to the county.

Kimberly Herrmann is the community outreach manager for SEICHN. She worked closely with local agencies to bring breast cancer awareness and programs to area women. Herrmann encourages women to have breast exams. She says the percent of those surviving breast cancer is now in the upper 90’s thanks to early detection.

Dr. Lane praised the efforts of local health nurse, Vicky Powell. “She has been just great to work with. Without her, this wouldn’t happen here,” she told the Osgood Journal as they were wrapping up the event last week.

Powell is thankful for the opportunity for local women and looks forward to working in the future with the SEICHN organization. “They are a fantastic group of women,” she concluded.
To contact the Ripley County Health Department, call 689-0506.

WANDA ENGLISH BURNETT PHOTO Pictured in front of the mobile mammography van that rolled into Ripley County on Wednesday, August 3 from left are: Dr. Adrianne Lane, Kimberly Herrmann, Dr. Madeleine Martin, all with the SouthEastern Indiana Cancer Health Network, Inc., Lawrenceburg; Vicky Powell, Ripley County health nurse, Phyllis Reed, nurse practitioner and Marienne Kremer, mammographer, both with St. Elizabeth Medical Center, Edgewood, KY. Thanks to a variety of grants provided through the SouthEastern Indiana Cancer Health Network, Inc., 40 area women were given free mammograms at the mobile unit that was located beside the health department in Versailles.