First Posted: 1/14/2009

Maternal and Family Health Services (MFHS) and the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute are sponsoring a program to increase awareness about cervical cancer among women enrolled in the WIC Nutrition Program in Luzerne, Lackawanna, Wyoming, Wayne and Pike Counties.
January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, with a goal of educating and empowering women to get an annual Pap test which can detect cervical cancer at its earliest stages. Cervical cancer is nearly 100 percent curable if detected early. As part of this project, women who visit the participating MFHS WIC Nutrition Centers throughout the month of January will receive information packets with educational materials about cervical cancer, including locations where they can gain affordable access to testing and care. Women will also have the opportunity to enter to win a gift card for participating in the project.
Although cervical cancer is highly preventable and treatable, women continue to develop cervical cancer in the United States at a rate of about 11,000 per year. About 4,000 women die from cervical cancer in the United States every year. For more information, call 1-800-367-6347 or visit the MFHS web site at: .
For more information about the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute please call 941-7984, 970-6543,Wilkes-Barre, or visit the Cancer Institute Web site at .