Cancer Screening Van to visit Avoyelles July 7 & 8

Alexandria, LA (June 24, 2020) – The Cancer Screening Van will stop in Avoyelles Parish on July 7-8 to offer free cancer screens for eligible residents. Van services have been resumed after being suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The van is a feature of The Rapides Foundation’s Cancer Screening Project, a program that helps residents get access to free medical screenings for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers. Early screening for these cancers have been shown to be cost-effective and promote longer, healthier lives.

The van is a mobile digital mammography unit that travels throughout Central Louisiana parishes twice a month. Patients receive free clinical breast exams, digital mammograms, cervical exams, Pap smears and colon cancer screening take-home tests. The van is a partnership between The Rapides Foundation, Cenla Medication Access Program and the Partners in Wellness Program at Feist-Weiller Cancer Center at LSU Health Shreveport.

These services are free of charge for Central Louisiana residents who are uninsured or on Medicaid. The program follows American Cancer Society screening guidelines, which recommend how often men and women should get screened, and at what ages.

Appointments are required. To request an appointment for the Rapides Parish stop, please call Cancer Screening Specialist Kayla Edwards at 318-767-3027 or toll-free at 1-855-767-3027 by July 2. For more information and to see the full schedule of upcoming clinics, visit www.cmaprx.org/CancerScreeningProject.