CHICO — Rebecca Senoglu has spent the past 20 years supporting people battling cancer. She works in the library at the Enloe Regional Cancer Center, a ground-floor room that doubles as a comfort space, where she recommends books and other resources while dispensing kindness.
Cancer comes in many forms and affects people of all ages. Each is life-altering and emotional. With breast cancer, patients of a certain age strike a chord.
“I don’t want to see young women in here,” Senoglu said, sitting in the library with colleagues who nodded in agreement.
“We all secretly cry together when when we see someone young,” injected Denise Darrow, who manages breast-care services. “We’re the face of strength, but behind the doors, we’re like, ‘Wow, that was really tough.’ ”
They and others at the cancer center stress screening and prevention. These topics get a lot of attention in October, designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but they see the need year-round.
As such, Enloe is planning multiple events beyond awareness month. First comes the Healthier You Workshop on Sept. 21 at the Enloe Conference Center, aimed at relaying how to reduce risks. Next comes the Breast Cancer Resource Fair on Oct. 5 at the Enloe Comprehensive Breast Care offices next to the cancer center. In November, Enloe Comprehensive Breast Care will celebrate its first anniversary bringing imaging and treatment under one roof.
“A lot of women get breast cancer,” Senoglu said, “and if they catch it early, statistically they’re going to be more likely to survive it.”
Impetus
Cancer is the leading cause of death in Butte County, which sits in a cluster of counties with the highest rates of invasive cancers in the state.
“Enloe, as a comprehensive cancer center, not only is responsible for curing cancer but also helping people prevent it,” said Senoglu, coordinator of cancer support programs. “Every year, we do outreach screening events and prevention events.
“A lot of people know what they should do. The trick is, how do you get yourself to do it?”
And not just when events and awareness month grab attention.
“Every year, people age into screening options,” said Baylee Martin, a community outreach specialist. “A lot of people go, ‘Oh, I’m young, I’m still healthy …’ I think all of these services are here to capture the people who might not be thinking about it.”
For the workshop in particular, “our hope is we’ll have 20-year-olds show up,” she continued. “This information maybe isn’t relevant to them now, because they eat really healthy and already are very active, but hopefully it sticks in the back of their mind so when they do turn 40, they know (what they need to do).”
Enloe consolidated screening and care last year, on the second floor of the Fountain Building, after its physicians and an outside imaging practice coexisted at another site. Enloe Breast Imaging offers three-dimensional mammograms, the advanced scans available at the other location. Patients don’t need a referral or even a primary care physician to get a screening.
“People can get cancer in any month, not just in October,” Martin said.
Darrow concurred: “We try to highlight screening around October because we’re already focused on breast cancer, but we don’t want that to be the only time we’re highlighting prevention and screening.”
Visit enloe.org for more information.
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