Free Breast Health Services Available Through PA Health Department

Pennsylvania's Department of Health offers HealthyWoman, a breast cancer early-detection program, at no cost.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health offers HealthyWoman, a free breast and cervical cancer early-detection program, for women across the state who meet eligibility standards. Thos standard include: To view a chart of Eligibility at a Glance, click here or call 1-800-215-7494 to find out if you are eligible. If breast or cervical cancer is detected through the program, patients will be eligible to receive free treatment through the Department of Public Welfare’s Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Program.  Why is the HealthyWoman Program Important? 

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Breast Cancer Research: How You Can Help in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania taxpayers can donate all or part of their tax refund to cancer research in the Keystone State through a program called Refunds for Research

The PA Breast Cancer Coalition offers an annual program, Refunds for Research, that allows Pennsylvania taxpayers to help support cancer research in the Keystone State. By checking YES on line 35 of the PA 40 tax form, taxpayers can donate all or part of their state income tax refunds to breast and cervical cancer research. Every penny contributed goes directly to support PA breast and cervical cancer researchers in Western Pennsylvania and around the state as they work for a cure. Those who donate will join the thousands of Pennsylvania taxpayers who have contributed more than $2.8 million for Pennsylvania-based cancer research. Recent recipients in Western Pennsylvania include the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Carnegie …

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Hallmark Breast Cancer Study Holds Hope for Pennsylvania Patients

Breast cancer kills 12,000 women in Pennsylvania each year, but a new study holds hope for patients and the doctors who treat them

Researchers have unveiled what they believe is a hallmark study for breast cancer patients and the doctors who treat them, according to the PA Breast Cancer Coalition. Their findings, recently published in the journal Nature and the New York Times, are expected to pave the way for new treatment options in the coming years. The project, funded by a large federal grant, focused on a genetic analysis of breast cancer, which kills more than 12,000 women in Pennsylvania each year.  The scientists monitored the tumors of 825 breast cancer patients in the United States. As a result, they found four distinctive types of breast cancer. Within those types, researchers say they identified at least 40 genetic alterations that might be attacked by …

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Outer Beauty Tips Lead to Inner Strength for Western PA Women with Breast Cancer

Cancer Be Glammed, Two Cousins and other local and national businesses offer resources for women fighting breast cancer that doctors don't offer.

By the nature of its side effects, cancer treatment can make a private battle a very public affair. For a woman with cancer, having a bald head, pale skin or a missing breast can make her feel like she's being targeted by a bright spotlight and a banner that says, "Cancer patient." But now more than ever, there are resources for women that will put the spotlight back on their work, their accomplishments and their life—and change that banner to simply read, "Woman." Women in Western Pennsylvania and elsewhere can turn to Cancer Be Glammed.com, a website established three years ago by two Squirrel Hill women who both had experienced the after-effects of cancer. Co-founder Ellen Weiss Kander retired earlier this year, but co-founder Lisa …

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Breast Cancer in Young Women: Resources and Statistics in Moon

Breast cancer isn't age-specific. Here's how to cope with treatments and augmentations if you are diagnosed earlier in life.

Generally speaking, a woman in Pennsylvania has a one in 125 chance of getting breast cancer, according to this breast cancer statistics chart from komen.org. An American woman in her 30s has a one in 232 chance of getting the disease, and a woman 20 years her senior has a one in 42 probability, according to the website. “Although we aren’t certain, the cause of breast cancer in younger women is likely caused by a genetic predisposition,” says Ann H. Partridge, M.D., M.P.H., the medical oncologist director of the Adult Survivorship Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. While breast cancer treatment in young women is often effective, the chance of recovery tends to be worse in women under 40. …

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Allegheny County Turns Courthouse Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

The signature fountain in the courtyard and the surrounding walls of the Allegheny County Courthouse, Downtown, are bathed with pink lights through October in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Using artfully placed pink lighting, Allegheny County officials have bathed the landmark county courthouse on Grant Street, Downtown, with pink lighting that will remain through October on observance of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Council Councilwoman Barbara Daly Danko also have issued proclamations honoring those who work to increase awareness and research aimed at a cure for breast cancer. They presented those proclamations earlier this month to Kathy Purcell of the Susan G. Komen for a Cure foundation and Erika Deyarmin of the American Cancer Society. Lighting has been used to tint the water of the signature fountain in the courthouse courtyard. The stone walls of the complex also glow pink each …

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Beating Breast Cancer: North Fayette Woman Juggles Motherhood and Cancer Recovery

A local mother works to regain her life after a Stage IV breast cancer diagnosis.

Angi Perkowski Karvelis was 34 when a doctor told her to prepare a will. At 20 years old, her mother died of uterine cancer. The disease was swift: She was diagnosed days before Thanksgiving. By February, she was dead.  Karvelis was laying flat on a chiropractor's table 14 years later when a twinge of pain shot through her breast. Later that evening, a few days before Thanksgiving, Karvelis performed her first self-breast examination. She felt a lump.  "My mind immediately went to cancer," said Karvelis, a mother of two who lives in North Fayette with her husband. "Panicked. I was terrified, to be honest," she said.   Days later, a battery of tests gave her fears a name: Stage IV breast cancer. The disease had advanced, metastasized …

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SHARE: Faces of Breast Cancer Survivors

Are you a breast cancer survivor? Do you know a breast cancer survivor? Then join this photo gallery!

There's more to Breast Cancer Awareness Month than wearing a pink ribbon on your collar and cheering for the pink socks-wearing Steelers. It's about educating others on ways to prevent the disease and detect it as early as possible. This month is also a chance to celebrate and share survival stories—and provide hope and comfort to the newly diagnosed. Here at Patch, we ask that you upload a photo to the gallery above of a breast cancer survivor that you know. Just click the "Upload Photos and Videos" tab. Let's see how many brave, strong and beautiful women—and men—we can unite to show others that beating breast cancer can be done.

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Battling Breast Cancer: A Moon Woman's Story

A Moon Township woman shares her breast cancer story with Patch.

  Moon Township resident Beth Lehmier was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 2010. Throughout her treatment, she documented her fight with the disease on her blog, Lehmier.Blogspot.com. Below is an an excerpt from the website Lehmier shared with Patch, chronicling how she and her family coped with the diagnosis and early treatment.  Lehmier will soon mark her second year being cancer-free: Her last chemotherapy treatment was Nov. 8, 2010.    February 14, 2010: I found a lump on my left breast. Sure, I've felt lumps before, but this one felt different. Hard, big, and suspicious. I informed my husband of my finding, who reassured me it was probably nothing, not to worry, and we would call my OB in the morning. February 15, 2010: I …

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Jenna Staul

1:49 pm on Monday, October 15, 2012

Thanks again, Beth, for sharing this with us. It's a very inspiring story.   more ›

Shop Pink Around Robinson and Moon to Benefit Breast Cancer Awareness

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which means a variety of pink products will be hitting the shelves. But, do the proceeds from your pink purchases always go towards the cause?

A wave of pink is flooding stores everywhere, as retailers participate in Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For the savvy shopper, October brings an opportunity to donate to a good cause while snagging unique, pink-hued items. In Western Pennsylvania, retailers offering rosy items include: Panera Bread Purchase a pink ribbon bagel at Panera Bread this month and a portion of the proceeds will benefit breast cancer research. Pink ribbon bagels are available at Panera Bread locations for a limited time. H&M A portion of proceeds from the store's "pink products" will go to the American Cancer Society. Customers can also donate at the cash register. H&M is located at the Mall at Robinson.  Macy's Macy's at Ross Park Mall has "Pink Shop" products …

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