Free Colorectal Cancer Screening Tests delivered to Neighborhood Healthcare

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Tana Lorah, Associate Director                                   

Desk: 858-300-2779

Mobile: 619-922-0386                                                           

Email: TLorah@sdcms.org           

Free Colorectal Cancer Screening Tests delivered to Neighborhood Healthcare

Beckman Coulter Inc. delivers 2000 colorectal cancer screening tests to Neighborhood Healthcare in a coordinated effort to save lives.

San Diego, CA (August 17, 2009) – On Monday, August 17, 2009, Beckman Coulter Inc. donated 2,000 Fecal Occult Blood Tests (HEMOCCULT® SENSA®) that will help screen eligible adults for colorectal cancer (CRC) for free at Neighborhood Healthcare in Escondido. Mary Guan, Senior Marketing Specialist with Rapid Testing, Business Center, Beckman Coulter Inc., states 'Compared to colonoscopy and other screening options, fecal occult blood testing (FOBT) is the most cost-effective screening tool for early CRC detection, especially when medical resources are scarce. Beckman Coulter is proud to donate the Hemoccult SENSA FOBT tests, which detect gastrointestinal bleeding that may be related to colorectal cancer. Our company is dedicated to improving patient health and reducing the cost of care -- we are happy to be part of this worthy project that may help save lives of medically underserved individuals through early detection.'

The San Diego County Medical Society Foundation in partnership with Neighborhood Healthcare will increase the colon cancer screening for uninsured patients between the ages of 50-80 and identify cancer that would have gone undetected because of the person’s inability to pay. 

These patients are typically under 200% of the Federal Poverty Level and extremely vulnerable.  They do not have access to health insurance or public programs that could support these types of screenings.  Any positive screens will be referred for a colonoscopy through the PASD free Surgery Day that is done in partnership with Kaiser Permanente San Diego.  Kaiser Permanente will perform a free colonoscopy and any needed follow-up through this partnership.  This program benefits the community by increasing access to care, getting people back to work, avoiding unnecessary emergency room visits, and saving lives.

James Schultz, M.D., Medical Director of Neighborhood Healthcare notes “We are deeply appreciative of the Beckman Coulter Foundation and the San Diego County Medical Society Foundation for leading this effort. It is refreshing to see partnerships between the private health sector, private enterprise, and the Community Health Centers like this. This particular project will, without a doubt, result in several lives saved and several cancers being prevented.”

Additional supporters of this initiative for colon cancer screening are Kaiser Permanente and the Alliance Healthcare Foundation. 

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer mortality in the U.S.  The economic of CRC treatment is huge: costs totaled roughly $8.5 billion for new cases in 2007.  Caught in its early stages, CRC is relatively easy to treat. The American Cancer Society recommends that people who have no identified risk factors should begin regular screening at age 50.

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About Project Access San Diego

Project Access San Diego (PASD) is a program of the San Diego County Medical Society Foundation (SDCMSF), a nonprofit organization that, through PASD, mobilizes a network of medical volunteers, hospitals, and referring community clinics to provide the uninsured with donated outpatient surgeries and procedures that significantly improve their health, ability to work, and quality of life. For more information about SDCMSF, please contact Kitty Bailey, Executive Director, at (858) 300-2779 and visit the organization website at www.SDCMSF.org.

About Beckman Coulter

Beckman Coulter, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of biomedical testing instrument systems, tests and supplies that simplify and automate laboratory processes. Spanning the biomedical testing continuum—from pioneering medical research and clinical trials to laboratory diagnostics and point-of-care testing—Beckman Coulter's 200,000 installed systems provide essential biomedical information to enhance health care around the world. The company, based in Fullerton, Calif., reported 2007 annual sales of $2.76 billion with more than 78 percent of this amount generated by recurring revenue from supplies, test kits and services. For more information about Beckman Coulter Inc. , please visit the company website at www.beckmancoulter.com

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is America’s leading integrated health plan. Founded in 1945, it is a nonprofit, group practice prepayment program headquartered in Oakland, California. Kaiser Permanente serves the health care needs of 3.3 million members in Southern California. Today it encompasses the nonprofit Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and their subsidiaries, and the for-profit Southern California Permanente Medical Group. More information about Kaiser Permanente can be found at www.kaiserpermanente.org.

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