Linda Creed — Fighting Breast Cancer with Heart
Submitted: Fran Orodeckis, Director of Development, Linda Creed
Linda Creed is uniquely Philadelphia. Named for local song writer Linda Creed Epstein, who died at age 37 after battling breast cancer for ten years, the agency has been at the forefront of fighting the disease since 1987. It began by educating and raising awareness about the signs and symptoms– ground breaking at the time, since people only shamefully whispered about breast cancer then.
Linda Creed grew by recognizing that the information they taught was wasted if women could not access routine screenings or diagnostic tests. Thus, from education came action.
With our core mission to provide mammograms for women normally ineligible for free health services, the typical woman we serve is as a single head of household who adequately provides for herself and family but has limited disposable income. She either lacks health insurance or must meet high deductible qualifications, so she often ignores her personal health. Yet, with breast cancer diagnosed in 1 in 8 women, a yearly mammogram screening is imperative.
In partnership with 13 area hospitals and one in the Pocono Mountains, Linda Creed provides free screenings in the spring and fall. Through our screenings, 300+ women receive comprehensive breast health exams in accordance with guidelines issued by the AMA. This includes a clinical breast exam, a mammogram, and breast health education. Of those screened, approximately 30% need further diagnostic testing, a cost Linda Creed covers. For symptomatic women of any age, we offer free diagnostic testing year-round.
We take our involvement to the next stage, as well. Through Linda Creed’s Patient Assistance Program, women undergoing breast cancer treatment can find financial relief for living expenses, childcare, and rent. Through our toll-free number and web presence, women within the Delaware Valley and across the nation reach out to us for guidance in accessing care, medical information, or simply a shoulder to cry on.
Women also turn to Linda Creed for culturally relevant education in the African-American and Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender communities, and at community health fairs and workplace education.
Plus, Linda Creed advocates at the state and national levels to keep breast cancer issues at the forefront with legislators and policymakers, ensuring breast cancer research funding and a focus on new avenues of research.
Remarkably, Linda Creed achieves all of this while receiving no government funding. The organization raises all funds for its nearly $500,000 annual budget through private sources and granting agencies.
Spring is in the air and with it comes Linda Creed’s next round of free screenings at a hospital near you. We ask all our Chamber members to help us get the word out. Don’t let any woman you know - your mother, aunt, cousin, friend, neighbor, employee - go without a routine mammogram or ignore a symptom due to lack of insurance. Tell them about Linda Creed. Urge them to call us at 1-877-99CREED or visit us on the web at www.lindacreed.org.
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