Copyright © 2003 NLThomas
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TAHLEQUAH, OK - The Cherokee Nation was recently awarded a $7.7 million grant for education and early detection of breast and cervical cancer. The grant is a five-year extension of the Center of Disease Control's (in Atlanta) grant that has, for the last nine years, funded the Cherokee Nation Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program.

Julie Erb, director of the Cancer Grant Programs for Cherokee Nation Health Services, said the grant should continue to improve health care for Cherokee women.

"The amount that has been awarded to us per year for the next five years is more than $1.5 million, almost double the amount for fiscal year 2002," Erb said. "CDC requires a 1-to-3 match of funds. We are required in kind to match one dollar for every three dollars that they give us. Our in kind match this year is coming from non-federal, donated professional time."

The grant should also allow the workforce for the program to nearly double, adding a full-time case manager at every clinic.

"Case managers work with the clinic to insure that everyone enrolled in our program is paid for. There should be no reason that the clinic budget has to cover any woman for early detection services for breast or cervical cancer. Everyone should have third party coverage by now. We tailor our outreach to those we serve, but we serve whoever comes in and all kinds of people come in," Erb said.

Mammography screening is available at every Cherokee Nation health site, with most clinics using mobile mammography units or vans. Erb said the vans are state-of-the-art equipment and American College of Radiology accredited.

"We have three vans, soon to be four. I don't know of any other breast care facility that can provide this much service or has had this type of expansion," Erb said.

Once the screening mammograms are taken, they are sent to the Oklahoma Breast Care Center in Oklahoma City for interpretation.

"We are now in our fourth or fifth year of a contract with OBCC. They are wonderful to work with. We have a system where, if anything is abnormal, they send a letter to the patient from there, as well as faxing the results to us, to providers and to the radiology department at Stilwell. We have a system where we track, with the case managers providing the tracking," Erb said.

Since starting the mobile mammography through the program, 51 patients have been diagnosed with breast cancer, 80 percent of those at the earliest stage of detection.

"These are women who would have been missed otherwise, women with no means to pay for testing other than this program," Erb said. "In the past, when a patient was diagnosed with breast cancer, treatment options were slim to none. I think we are better off than a lot of tribal programs in other regions. Our Tribal Council allows for cancer treatment payment from the fuel tax monies. So, not only do we have access to the contract health budget, the council allocates so much money each year from the fuel tax specifically for the treatment of cancer," Erb said.

Some other items that will be provided through the grant include two new culposcopy machines, which is the diagnostic equipment necessary to follow-up an abnormal pap test, cryosurgery equipment, computers, office equipment, furniture, lease costs for a new location at 1200 W. Fourth St. in Tahlequah, Okla., utilities and health education supplies. Erb is quick to point out that none of these costs will be coming from tribal funds, all will be paid for by the grant.

After a minority grant to fund two more positions for a project is written, Erb is looking ahead to a Comprehensive Cancer Control Grant, one that would cover such cancers as ovarian, prostate and skin.

"I have this vision," Erb said. "My vision is to see Cancer Tumor Registry working alongside Comprehensive Cancer Control working alongside the Breast and Cervical Cancer Program, working alongside the Office of Minority Health, working alongside the whole system - it's really a nice combination."