 Sharon Thomas-Yarbrough, and this is Sister Power on Think Tech Hawaii. I'm also president of Sisters Empowering Hawaii, Hawaii's Formals Women's Empowerment Organization. This show is dedicated to the motivation, advancement, education, and empowerment of all women. October is Breast Cancer Month. My special guest is Rolanda Morgan, serves as a Susan G. Coleman Executive Director of Hawaii. Rolanda, welcome to Sister Power. Thank you so much. Thank you for having me on your show today to share what Susan G. Coleman is doing in the breast cancer community here in Hawaii and around the country. Yeah, you know what I love about it. Well, October is definitely a special month, but everyone wears pink. That's the color. That is true. That is true. And last year, or maybe it's two years now at this point, we at Coleman decided to emphasize a bit more that it was about more than pink. We certainly are associated with pink and love to take responsibility for having that being the color associated with breast cancer during the month of October, but we also wanted to make sure that people understood what the mission was, and that was to support the breast cancer community. Those who have to face the diagnosis of breast cancer, those who are living with breast cancer, and those who support them. Well, let's just jump right into it then. What is breast cancer awareness month? Let's talk about that. So it is, it is a recognition and a celebration, a celebration for those people who may want to call themselves survivors. Those are people who have faced breast cancer diagnosis, have gone to treatment and are on the other side, and I find themselves cancer free. Also, those people who are recognized as survivors, those are people who are living with breast cancer. There are many women who live with breast cancer for years. That is why we have, as an organization who devotes more money to research to find cures and new treatments, quite all of that research money, a great deal of it, 85% of it, towards looking for treatments for those who live with breast cancer. Recognized as, and understood to be, metastatic breast cancer, meaning that the breast cancer, the breast, the cancer started in the breast. However, it has moved to other parts of the body. Women can live many years, but they are on a roller coaster ride when they have metastatic breast cancer. There are good days, there are days that are not so good. So we refer to them as strivers. So they, that part of breast cancer awareness month is celebrating the life of those people who are dealing with breast cancer. It's also making the public aware of the things that can be done to bring the numbers down in terms of people who are having to deal with breast cancer as a disease. And we've become quite successful, actually, through early detection and making people aware of the need for a mammogram starting at age 40. One should have a mammogram annually. If you have incidents of breast cancer in your family, you should speak with your doctor to find out when you should start to have a mammogram, because it may be earlier than 40. But 40 is baseline for when every, every one should start to have their mammogram. And because we have been quite successful both our organization and many of those who are involved with breast cancer in the women's health community have made great strides in getting people to get their mammogram. So our incidence rates are down. But we are still striving to find those treatments so that those with metastatic breast cancer can grow better lives. There is no cure. But we want to find the treatments that make their lives less stressful. And while we are still working on the ultimate goal, which is to find a cure for breast cancer. You know, you sent me some interesting information last night. And I want to talk about what is stand for her a health equity revolution. Goman took a look at barriers that prevented the community at large from getting the highest level of treatment and preventative services possible in order to have respect on the numbers of people who are being diagnosed with breast cancer. What we found was that black women had the highest rate of breast cancer in the country. So we focused on a program that is truly about a health equity revolution in total. So making sure that no matter where you are, no matter what, where you live, no matter who you are, you have access to the best health care. We focused on African American women because the numbers dictated that we do so. Black women are about 40% more likely to die from breast cancer than white women. And we have put together that program stand for her, her being health equity revolution, so that we could have culturally responsive navigators if one were to call Coleman's helpline at 1877 Goldman, a breast care helpline. One can be connected to a patient navigator. These navigators are attuned to the culture of the people that they are speaking to here in Hawaii. That is particularly acute of importance as we are a multicultural community here. So we made sure that there were also navigators at the other end of that who could speak to our Micronesian community to native Hawaiians and to melons of Tongans. As we found that, and I'm sure you would agree, that people are more responsive when they feel there's someone on the other end of the line who understands them and they could speak greatly to. But the African American community with its greater need because while we aren't having more diagnosis than the population at large, it is because we are late in getting that diagnosis. Early stage breast cancer, no one's dying from early stage breast cancer anymore, stage one. But the late diagnosis is where we are acutely focused in working with the African American community. Don't wait. Don't wait. That's why the focus on Black women, you're explaining that. Can you further elaborate on why the focus on Black women? Well, it is because, and there are some cultural differences in why Black women are higher in numbers. There are some differences in the types of tumors. I am not a scientist, I am not a physician, so I cannot speak in scientific or medical terms. But that is certainly one area. As I just alluded to, the late stage diagnosis is a major problem. Everyone can understand that. If we are going to, because of all the many things that we are involved in in our lives, and for many of us, our focus on taking care of everyone else except for ourselves, we put off when we know that something is not right with our body, and no one knows your body better than you. So we always focus on having people understand that they should know they're normal. So you know when something's not normal in your body, and you find something not normal in your breasts, then you must go and have a check. There are barriers to care that are also tied to socioeconomic considerations in our communities. So we are focusing on making sure that within communities there are facilities for people in the communities to actually go and get the health care that they need at the level that anyone else would be able to get their health care. And we also face some risk factors that are directed from other disease such as diabetes, such as being overweight. Those things also lead to behaviors that can be detrimental and quite to a need to concentrate more on our total health, which will ultimately help us in avoiding a disease either like breast cancer. So what are some of the racial and ethnic difference in breast cancer in the US? Well, again, we are 40% more likely to die from breast cancer. So our death rate, our mortality rate is our difference here. We're not getting more than other populations in the communities here in the US. We are having a higher mortality rate because we are discovering the disease later. Here in Hawaii, for instance, breast cancer is the number one cancer causing death among women. Number one, and nothing else comes close. So breast cancer is responsible for 35% of deaths from cancer in Hawaii. Wow. The next largest is lung and raucous cancer at 10%. So that's an enormous, that's an enormous difference. That's an enormous difference. And it all points to that late stage diagnosis. Burial detection is very key to survival rates where breast cancer is concerned now. Wow. Well, what are the unseen financial barriers that undermine care for breast cancer patients? And how is Coleman addressing them? Well, most recently, Coleman released a white paper, and it's called Making Ends Me. And we took a look at how those financial and economic situations affect a breast cancer patient's ability to get the treatment that they need. And we were able to uncover that breast cancer is the most expensive form of cancer to treat, the most expensive. Up to 73% of adult cancer survivors experience what is known as financial toxicity or personal finances that prevent them from going to out-of-pocket costs that occur when fighting a disease that is as expensive as breast cancer in it. One exhaust all the coverage that they get from your insurance coverage. And it is a clearly problem. Almost 50% of breast cancer patients report that even mild financial toxicity affects their treatment choices. It affects their quality of life. I mean, we're getting down to choosing between, okay, so am I going to get all of the groceries that I want to get this week? Or am I going to get that treatment? I mean, so that's where it is toxic. Coleman, two years ago, came up with, just before we went into COVID, we came up with a financial assistance program. And with that program, one can call the Coleman Helpline, 1-800-GILL-COMIN. And on the other end of it, there will be someone who will take their call. And for people in Hawaii, you want them to know that we've made it so that that line is available 24-7. You won't get an answering machine because of the time difference that can affect our communication to, if we're connecting with an organization on the mainland, then our fall century is located on it. So someone will be there. But if you call and you are a breast cancer patient, or you're living with breast cancer, you can apply for our financial assistance program. And you can get from $550 to $750 in three days in your convenience to help with some of those things that prevent one or to assist with some of the things of life that you need in order to continue with your treatment, to get to your treatment, transportation costs, to care for your children if you need to get a babysitter to take care of your kids when you go for your treatment. During COVID, we expanded the categories that one could use those funds for to rent and food. So it is truly financial assistance for those who find themselves in that situation where they need financial assistance in order to continue their treatment. We don't want that to be discovered through getting the information and doing research for this paper. That was indeed an issue with people who were facing a breast cancer diagnosis and in treatment to getting the level of treatment that they needed. So that's one of the things that Colin is doing. This is some great information that, you know, I want the sister power viewers out there to share this video because this information that you're sharing, especially financially, is pertinent information. So let me backtrack a little. You know, you mentioned mammograms, where can women obtain three mammograms? Is there a place here that we can obtain a free mammogram? Well, almost anywhere, any of the hospital systems, any of the community clinic who provide that service, who have mammography, no one is refused a mammogram. So that's a fallacy. One can always get, one can get their mammogram. So that's no longer something that one fears that they will not be able to walk into a hospital or a place where treatment is available and mammogram. So that's funding that I just mentioned for the financial assistance program comes from events like our war the pink walk, which we had this past weekend. And those happen all over the country. And that's one of the main reasons why that funding, that fundraising, raising happens in order that no one be refused both the treatment and the ability to remove the variants that prevent them from getting. That's good to know. And I want our sister power viewers to know that we are going to do a part two on breast cancer awareness month with Rolanda. And I read Rolanda that you, let's talk a little bit about you. Yeah, you started off as a volunteer. Yes. Yes. Talk about that. So many, I'm not an unusual in that in the Coleman organization. Many, many people come to Colrin as volunteers. I came as a volunteer for the race for the cure and participating in the race for the cure and to move here from New York. And on the day that I arrived here, I don't walk, but the race at the time was happening a copy of Lonnie Park. I went down and some someone in New York, say happened, recruited me to come and become a volunteer. So volunteers are the engine that drives Bowman. And they participate on many, many different levels, not only with our walk, we have advisory committees on all different levels, those who work with our legislators to make sure that women's health issues are brought before our legislators and passed in order that we can have laws that protect women's health. We, of course, are specifically interested in laws that cover breast cancer thought bridge, but women's health in the main. So we have volunteers that work on that level. So volunteering and Bowman sort of go hand in hand. And yes, that's what brought me to the organization. And after a few years of passing, I'm now the executive here in what? Let's talk to our sister power viewers about ways to give. Let's continue. Let's keep moving it forward. Let's talk about ways to give ways to give are quite easy and available all year. If you go to common.org. And there are many reasons to go to common.org. One is to make a donation. And there is quite easy, there's a big button on the home page that says donate. So it's quite easy to make a donation there. We have many people who leave endowments for us. We have matching funds through places of employment. So there are many ways in which one can donate, but $5 to us means as much as $5,000. So there's nothing too small or too large. Our support coming from from the community has grown in such a way that we have been able to direct more than a billion dollars to specifically to research. There is no one larger. There's no larger contributor to breast cancer research. That means giving funds to the researchers who are doing the work to find the cure, then Susan G. Coleman, other than the United States. So that's one place where the funding goes. But common.org is also loaded with all kinds of education. If one wants to learn about breast cancer 101, that's available on Susan G. Coleman. All of our programs stand for her, which we have just mentioned. We have a new research project called shares for cures where the community can share their information in order that we get that information to the researchers who are doing the work. We have the health equity, revolution, blog and Instagram accounts. I would direct all of your sister power listeners and viewers to go there and take a look at that. They're great stories. We have doctors, survivors of which I am one who share their stories and keep us updated on the news where breast cancer treatments are concerned. So there's a plethora of information there. It tells you how people can get involved and how they can keep up with this disease that is still touching far too many. And that as long as it is touching people, Coleman will be there. We will be there on all of the levels to care, helping those who are in the community, helping others through the community to our events that we like our walk, like the gala that we have here in Hawaii so that we can ultimately buy the cure. That's good news. Just very quickly. We have a few minutes left, but breast cancer and women of color is misrepresented or ignored. Can you just expand on that a little more? Well, that is why we started the Stand for Her program. So it is no longer ignored. It is no longer ignored. So there were 10 areas of the country that we really keyed in the program on because the numbers were the highest. And there has been great movement in those areas for seeking education, patient support that is at a high quality. There is workforce development. Under the Stand for Her program, there's also a patient navigator training. So again, we can actually develop a workforce of people who can speak to the community and go to the community and take the message where they are. We have a program called Worship in Pink. So that also is a faith-based program that many events happen in the churches in our African Americans. So while it has been ignored, as you say, while we have ignored it, we can no longer ignore. And we are going to be there in the community to let folks know that you needn't go without help. That support is there, that you can get the services that you need, and that there is help for you to face a diagnosis if you are so diagnosed or if you aren't living with breast cancer. But in closing, breast cancer is the leading cause, cause of cancer death in the U.S. for African American women, for all women. For all women, okay. This is what this is all about, it's for all women. So Rolanda, please share with our sister power viewers some words of wisdom and hope. Well, I would say that, as I said, we are not dying from early stage diagnosis of breast cancer anymore. In order to detect an early stage breast cancer, one must know what their normal is, know their body, go and get screened if you were 40, and over the minute you turn 40, you start getting a mammogram every year. I know, it's not pleasant, it's the best we have. It has brought our detection numbers down, but if we don't get that early detection, then we get into that late stage diagnosis, which is for our audience at sister power an issue, we have to get to not wait, go get screened, screening is available. If you need help, if you don't know where to go, go to Coleman.org slash help line and find out in your community where you can go for help. Thank you for your words of wisdom, Rolanda. I'm Sharon Thomas Yarbrough. Thank you for spending your time with us. Aloha.