Carle Health offering free mammograms at 4 locations on Free Mammogram Day

CENTRAL ILLINOIS (WMBD) — This month being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Friday is Free Mammogram Day.

Free Mammogram Day takes place every year on the third Friday of October.

This year, several health locations are offering free mammograms all day to underinsured and uninsured patients. Carle Health is offering them at four of their locations from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

• Carle Health Methodist Diagnostic Center | 112 NE Crescent Ave., Peoria
• Carle Health Pekin Hospital | 600 S. 13th St., Pekin
• Carle Health Proctor Hospital | 5409 N. Knoxville Ave., Peoria
• Carle BroMenn Outpatient Center | 3024 E. Empire St., Bloomington

Carle Health says each year on Free Mammogram Day, over 50 free mammograms are provided.

Sara Lawson, regional Mammography lead of Carle Health Greater Peoria, said it’s important to offer free mammograms to detect cancer early.

“We have a lot of women that just won’t have their mammogram done or they wait until they feel something. And then the cancer has progressed,” she said. “So that really detection really is our key; getting the women in and getting their mammogram done and even their follow ups under these grants is amazing that we can do that for these patients.”

Lawson says women should be comfortable enough to get a mammogram because it could save your life.

“We have a lot of women that come in and we just, you know, try to connect with them, say we’ve been through it, too,” she said. “Even our young techs have had us compress them so they know how it feels, so they’re aware of it so they can give the best care that they can.”

Other places are offering free mammograms on Friday. OSF HealthCare will offer free mammograms from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute in Peoria.

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