Southampton, New York—A leading reason most women give for not getting their annual breast exam and mammogram is “they don’t have time.” The weekday demands of work and family make it a scheduling challenge. Starting in March 2019, the Ellen Hermanson Breast Center at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital is hoping to eliminate that excuse by opening on the first Saturday of every month from 8 am through 2 pm for women 40 years and older on the East End, with and without insurance, by providing a clinical examination with a nurse practitioner immediately followed by a mammogram. Appointments are available by calling 631-726-8400. The only requirement is that it must be at least one year since the last mammogram.
According to the National Cancer Institute, “Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women after skin cancer. Mammograms can help detect breast cancer early, possibly before it has spread.” A mammogram, or x-ray of the breast, currently remains the gold standard for the early detection of breast cancer and takes 20 minutes or less.