Cancer Screening mobile unit comes to Central Louisiana

A major component of The Rapides Foundation’s new Cancer Screening Project is literally rolling through Central Louisiana. From the outside, it looks like a motor home. On the inside, it’s a medical clinic where eligible residents can get free cancer screenings.

The mobile unit is a partnership between the Foundation and the Partners in Wellness Program at Feist-Weiller Center Center at LSU-Shreveport. So far, the unit has made four stops in Natchitoches, enabling 38 women to get mammograms, Pap smears and pelvic exams. Each client also received a colorectal cancer screening test that they will take at home.

The Cancer Screening Project is administered through the Foundation’s Cenla Medication Access Program, which since 2001 has provided free medications to thousands of residents who couldn’t afford them. Now, Central Louisiana individuals who meet the income qualifications may be eligible for screenings that detect breast, cervical and colorectal cancers.

The Cancer Screening Project tries to make it as easy as possible for residents to get screened. For that reason, it is bringing the screenings to rural areas via the mobile screening unit.

“Some people not only can’t afford to pay for regular cancer screens, but they also can’t afford the time and effort to make the drive in to bigger cities to get those screens. We hope to make it easier for them to get these potentially life-saving tests,” said Joe Rosier, president and CEO of The Rapides Foundation.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact Trayce Snow at 318-767-3027.