New mammogram mobile unit

The first mammography-screening event using the Mobile Mammogram Unit (MMU) will take place at St. Mark’s AME Church in Jackson Heights this Saturday on June 23.
Hosted by Elmhurst Hospital Center and City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate, the screenings will be held at the church located at 95-18 Northern Blvd. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Mobile Mammogram Unit initiative was started to offer cancer education and screening services to uninsured, underserved, and undocumented Queens women through the Queens Healthy Living Partnership Program at little or no cost.
The MMU has a digital mammography unit and an exam area for pap smear screenings. Women will be screened to see if they qualify before getting an exam on the MMU. If a patient is screened and needs additional testing, they have the option to receive follow-up care through the Queens Health Network at either Elmhurst or the Queens Hospital Center.
“Our community has three times the late-stage breast cancer cases (than normal) because women either cannot afford to be screened or cannot access the services due to language barriers,” said Monserrate. “While we fight health disparities in the lab, we must also fight them on the street.”