To send an email for additional information please contact:   Dawn Bush

Breast, Cervical and Colon Cancer Screening:

Cancer Services program of Allegany and Cattaraugus Counties:

Allegany County Department of Health 3

453 B. Route 417, East Wellsville, NY 14895

Phone: 585-593-4839

Livingston-Wyoming Cancer Prevention Partnership

University of Rochester- Livingston-Wyoming Cancer Prevention Partnership

5362 Mungers Mill Rd., Silver Springs, NY 14550

Phone: 800-588-8670

Cancer Screening Partnership of Ontario, Seneca and Yates

OSY Cancer Services Partnership Information

Ontario County Community Health Services

3019 County Complex Drive, Canandaigua, NY 14424

Phone: 585-396-4559

Cancer Screening Partnership of Wayne County

Wayne County Public Health Services

Via Health of Wayne Driving Park Avenue, Newark, NY 14513

Phone: 315-332-2255

NYS Cancer Services Program Partnership of Chemung and Schuyler Counties

Broome County Health Department

220 Steuben Street, Montour Falls, NY 14865

Phone: 607-535-9174

Wellness Council of the Southern Tier- Steuben County

411 Canisteo Street, Hornell, NY 14843

Phone: 607-324-8103 .

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For Dodie, taking over the Rushville Library and reading center was her way to give back to a three-county community; one that gave so much to her and her husband, Ted.  It was three years ago when Dodie first felt the lump in her breast.  "I was talking to my brother on the phone... and I had an itch," she says. "And that's when I found the lump." Her husband Ted immediately knew his wife had to be tested, but as a production manager in a small AM radio station, neither he nor Dodie had sufficient insurance to support the cost. That's when Cancer Services of Ontario, Seneca & Yates Counties, stepped in to help, paying for the cost of the screening. When the screen came up positive for breast cancer, though, Dodie and Ted were back at square one. "Almost right away, I think we said, 'Okay: we'll deal with each day as it comes, we'll get the best information we can," says Ted.

Much of the help in that process also came from Cancer Services, an organization that had made its mission to help cancer victims, no matter what. "Last year alone, our partnership screened 365 people," says Mary Beer, Ontario County Public Health Director, who runs the Cancer Services program. "And out of those individuals, about fifty of them had things that needed to be followed-up on." In Dodie's case and others, Cancer Services pays for colorectal, cervical or breast cancer screenings for at-risk patients without health insurance. If a non-malignant tumor is found at those screenings, the service secures initial cancer treatments for free through a state grant. They also help the patient to get insured. Despite the public funding, officials insist it goes beyond just a welfare or entitlement program. "It's for many people that are working but don't have insurance," says Beer. "So we're trying to get to these people, because that's a barrier to care." "It's difficult enough for people that have the kind of support that we did," says Ted Baker, offering a personal endorsement of the program. "I can't imagine what it's like for people that don't have that kind of support."

For Ted and Dodie, life has had a happy and cancer-free ending, thanks to Cancer Services. "I think cancer can make someone feel very much alone," says Ted. "And that's the whole point of this Cancer Services partnership: you don't have to be alone." "Don't be afraid or ashamed," offers Dodie.  "This is your life."

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