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BILOXI, Miss. – The Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System’s (GCVHCS) Women Veterans Program is encouraging women Veterans to get screened for breast cancer during October, Breast Cancer

Awareness Month. According to GCVHCS Women Veterans Program Manager Dr. Donna Maxwell, breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women and is the second leading cause of cancer death

in women. Maxwell added that localized breast cancer has a 99 percent survival rate if detected early. “We’re encouraging all women Veterans to speak with their health care providers about

breast health and get checked and treated for breast cancer,” she said. “We recognize that some Veterans may have missed their regularly scheduled mammogram due to COVID-19 and encourage

women Veterans to reach out to their VA health care provider to get one scheduled.” During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and throughout the year, the GCVHCS Women Veterans Program offers

high quality women’s health care, including breast care services. “The VA leads the nation’s health care systems in providing mammograms to those who need them,” Maxwell said. “Every VA

medical center has a Women Veterans Program Manager to ensure women Veterans have access to appropriate care and treatment.” Breast care resources available through VA include screening and

diagnostic mammograms, breast ultrasound and MRI, genetic counseling and testing, cancer treatment and more. VA recommends regular breast cancer screening for women who are 45 years of age

and older, though some women may choose to start screening with yearly mammograms as early as age 40. Women should talk with their VA primary care provider team about what is best for them

and schedule their mammogram. For more information on the GCVCHS Women Veterans Program, visit the official GCVHCS Women Veterans Program web page. The Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System

is headquartered in Biloxi, Mississippi, and provides a variety of medical outpatient services to more than 81,000 Veterans and other beneficiaries at five locations in Mississippi, Alabama

and Florida.