October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Sandhills Regional Medical Center is encouraging area women to become proactive about their breast health.

In doing so, Sandhills Regional will present the program, “Breast Health from A-Z” on Oct. 15, from 6-8 p.m. in the hospital’s education classroom.

Dr. Timothy A. Jessie will lead the free program, which will include the following topics:

Benign breast conditions

What breast cancer is

Breast cancer by the numbers

Risk factors and risk reduction

Symptoms and signs of breast cancer

Screening for breast cancer - when and how, and

Treatment options

“The earlier breast cancer is found, the greater chance a patient has at beating it,” said Dr. Jessie, a general surgeon at Sandhills Regional Medical Center. “There are two and a half million breast cancer survivors in the United States. Women can’t choose their diagnosis, but they can take precautions to find breast cancer and begin treatment as early as possible.”

During his five-year general surgery residency in Akron, Ohio, Dr. Jessie was trained in the management and treatment of breast disease and cancer including newer techniques designed to save as much breast tissue as possible and limit the number of axillary (armpit) lymph nodes sampled. 

He also stays on top of changes in therapy and treatment of breast disease by attending medical conferences such as the prestigious Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium, which he will attend Oct. 1-4 in Chicago.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that more than 192,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer, the most common cancer among women in the United States, will be discovered this year. Fortunately, the number of breast cancer deaths continues to decrease each year as more women learn about the importance of early detection techniques.

Sandhills Regional Medical Center recommends that women in their 20s and 30s do monthly breast self-exams and undergo a clinical breast exam at least every three years. Women should have a clinical breast exam and a mammogram every year after age 40, said Linda Burnette, SHRMC chief nursing officer and interim CEO.

Women also can lower their risk of breast cancer by making the following lifestyle changes recommended by the ACS and Sandhills Regional Medical Center: limit alcohol use; exercise regularly; maintain a healthy weight; consider breast-feeding for at least several months; and don’t use post-menopausal hormone therapy unless you need it.

There will be an open house of Sandhills Regional Medical Center’s Radiology Department following the presentation Oct. 15.

To register for the breast health program, call (910) 205-8121 by Oct. 12.

To schedule a breast exam or mammogram appointment, call Sandhills Regional Medical Center at (910) 205-8100.

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Sandhills Regional Medical Center is owned by Health Management Associates of Naples, Fla. The company owns 58 hospitals throughout the United States, including four in North Carolina. Formerly Hamlet Hospital, Sandhills Regional Medical Center has provided Richmond County with uninterrupted health care since 1915.