Runnings employees donating to the WCA Foundation’s Shades of Pink Fund. Submitted photo

In early October, Runnings contacted UPMC Chautauqua, they wanted to donate locally to cancer care.

This was the perfect partnership with Runnings ladies bucket night and for breast cancer awareness month.

Rob, Runnings manager stated, “We wanted to make sure all of the money went to a program that gave locally to cancer care.”

In speaking with Megan Barone, director of development for UPMC Chautauqua and WCA Foundation, she talked with Rob about several options of where the money could go and stay local, and Rob chose Anne Sischo’s Shades of Pink Fund held at WCA Foundation. Together, they thought it would be the best fit with what they were trying to do.

Anne Sischo, local breast cancer survivor and her husband, Steve, started the fund three years ago, with the idea that the money raised from their annual golf tournament would go towards direct patient care for people who need mammograms and can’t afford it, transportation to assist with those needing to travel for their care, and for certifications for breast navigators assisting those going through breast cancer. Anne and Steve Sischo wanted to see that money stayed local and was used to help others through the difficult times.

“When I found out that I had cancer,” Sischo said, “the staff at UPMC Chautauqua’s mammography department were so positive, warm and comforting. We wanted to ensure people in the community were able to receive the same care as I had. The money we donate will be able to provide women in the community breast cancer screenings and the care, support and education they need to navigate through this journey.”

UPMC Chautauqua Shades of Pink breast screening program started in 2012 in the UPMC Chautauqua’s Center for Imaging. The purpose of the program is to increase access of breast screening to women who are identified as having barriers obtaining a clinical breast exams and mammogram. The name Shades Of Pink came about which encompasses all the degrees in variations of which women face in accessing breast cancer screening. No women should die of breast cancer because of a delay in treatment due to the lack of insurance, primary care physicians, transportation, language barriers or their age or the color of their skin.

UPMC Chautauqua Shades of Pink is a “one-stop same day” screening program. Women come to UPMC Chautauqua Center for Imaging where a nurse practitioner or physician will perform a clinical breast exam. Then the women moves on to get her mammogram screening and will receive same day results. UPMC Chautauqua’s certified breast navigator educates the women on her results of her screening and helps her to move to further diagnostic testing if her screening identifies any suspicious findings. The support given by the breast navigator moves throughout the screening, diagnosis, and treatment of breast cancer.

Finding breast cancer in its early stages can saves lives. The overall efforts of the UPMC Chautauqua Shades of Pink breast screening program are to educate, support, and connect women in need of breast screening, diagnosis and treatment of suspicious findings without delay. This will decrease the mortality rate at which women in our community die from breast cancer.

Those interested in donating to the Anne Sischo’s Shades of Pink Fund, contact Barone at 664-8423 or Baronema3@upmc.edu.