Hallelujah Health Fair set March 22 at Alto

A Hallelujah to Health health fair will be held at the Alto High School from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, March 22.

The Ross Breast Center will provide a mammogram mobile for women who would like to have a breast exam. Persons interested in receiving a mammogram at a discounted price and/or plan to attend this event, are asked to call Louraiseal McDonald, CEA-FCS at (903) 683-5416 or Irumimba Brown, LVN at (903) 683-4688.

Other health screenings will be available such as blood pressure, bone density and vision.

In compliance with the American with Disabilities Act requirements, participants with special needs can be reasonably accommodated by contacting the Cherokee County Extension Office at (903) 683-5416, five business days prior to the event.

Breast and cervical cancer are the most common types of cancer among American women, specifically among women of color. African American women in the United States have much higher rates of mortality from breast and cervical cancer than do women in other groups. According to the Texas Cancer Data Center 9.1 percent of African American women in Cherokee County died due to breast cancer in 2002. The Texas Department of State Health Services reported in Cherokee County there is a 6.2 percent incidence of cervical cancer among African American women.

The Cherokee Hallelujah to Health Coalition, which consists of the Cherokee Family and Consumer Sciences committee, and health agencies such as the Cherokee County Health Department and the Ross Breast Center, will serve as a task force in educating the public about this cancer.