October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Adding her voice to the important message is our First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden. Dr. Jill recorded a PSA encouraging women to get their mammograms. The message is part of Lifetime’s Stop Breast Cancer for Life campaign, but breast cancer is an important cause to Dr. Jill. After four of her friends were diagnosed with the disease in the 90s, she founded the Biden Breast Health Initiative that educates about early detection. So this PSA is the perfect spot for Dr. Jill to remind women to get their mammograms, which could save their lives.

As first lady, a professor of English, a mother and grandmother, Dr. Jill Biden’s daily to-do list is likely pretty long. But she’s taking time to remind women to prioritize their health.

“I get it. You’re busy. There are kids or grandkids to look after. You have so many things to take care of,” Biden, 70, says in a new PSA encouraging women to make an appointment for a mammogram. “Take a moment to put your health first. Get your mammogram. It might save your life. And nothing on your to-do list is more important than that.”

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Dr. Biden’s PSA is part of Lifetime’s Stop Breast Cancer for Life campaign. The spot will run on air as well as on the network’s social media channels.
The first lady started encouraging women to educate themselves about breast cancer in 1993, when four of her friends were diagnosed with the disease, which affects one of eight women in the United States.

After her friends’ diagnoses, Dr. Biden “launched the Biden Breast Health Initiative to educate Delaware high school girls about the importance of early detection,” according to her official White House bio. “As First Lady, Dr. Biden continues to stress the importance of cancer research and early detection efforts, especially in underrepresented communities and rural areas.”

Dr. Biden’s PSA wraps with an invitation to visit cancer.gov or to call 1-800-4-Cancer to get more information, including a fact sheet about mammograms.

“Between work, taking care of kids and grandkids, and all the demands of hectic modern life, women so often put themselves — and their health — last,” Elizabeth Alexander, the first lady’s communications director, tells PEOPLE. “Plus, with the global pandemic, many people have put off important health screenings, including mammograms. This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the first lady is asking women to put their health first and schedule their mammogram if it’s time.”

[From People]

I am terrible about getting my mammograms. It’s sheer laziness, too, nothing else. I have the reminder sheet from my doctor pinned to the corkboard above my monitor with a pert pair of drawn boobs greeting me every morning. But in honor of BCA month and Dr. Jill, I just scheduled my appointment. Because she’s right. Laziness is no reason not to get checked. I do self-exams, but they are not as effective at early detection as mammograms are. We’re focusing on so many aspects of women’s health that are under attack right now, it’s easy to forget about routine screenings and checkups. Take care of yourselves and encourage you friends to do the same. Just FYI, I did schedule my appointment but didn’t get one until January. Remember that the COVID vaccine is showing up in odd ways on those screenings so you have to have a six-week delay between vaccine and mammogram. That’s includes boosters, so plan accordingly.

Do check out the fact sheet referenced in the article. You can find it here. It’s very informative on all things mammogram, but it also discusses cost and resources for those who don’t have insurance. These tests can seem impossible financially, but there are options.

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A post shared by First Lady Dr. Jill Biden (@flotus)

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A post shared by First Lady Dr. Jill Biden (@flotus)

Photo credit: Avalon Red, Backgrid and Instagram

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By: Hecate
Title: Jill Biden encourages women to get mammograms: nothing is more important
Sourced From: www.celebitchy.com/736173/jill_biden_encourages_women_to_get_mammograms_nothing_is_more_important/
Published Date: Fri, 08 Oct 2021 11:00:00 +0000

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