BREAKFAST SHOW STAR BACKS BREAST CANCER APPEAL FOR NEW SOUTH BUCKS MOBILE SCREENING UNIT.
ITV presenter, and national treasure, Lorraine Kelly, is backing a new South Bucks-focussed, breast screening appeal, which hopes to fund a state-of-the-art mobile mammography unit, enabling thousands of women across the local area to gain access to breast screening in their community.
Launched in partnership by Amersham-based charity, Scannappeal, and Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust Charitable Funds, £310,000 still needs to be raised to be able to provide the “much-needed” mobile service, which will benefit women in areas including, Amersham, Chalfont St Peter, Chesham, Denham, Gerrards Cross, Marlow, Princes Risborough and Stokenchurch.
Commenting on why she’s supporting the appeal, Lorraine, who has fronted her ITV breakfast show since 2010, said: “I’m supporting the Bucks Mobile Breast Screening Appeal because regular breast screening saves lives. I hope that the convenience of being able to attend an appointment close to home will encourage those invited for a free NHS mammogram to take full advantage of it.”
She added: “As a resident of Buckinghamshire, I’m absolutely thrilled to see how quickly our community has rallied behind this important fundraising appeal, helping us reach our first £100,000! I encourage everyone to think about what support they can offer – why not visit one of Scannappeal’s beautiful open gardens this summer, organise your own fun fundraising event, or simply donate whatever feels right for you. Remember, your support, no matter how big or small, will help ensure early breast cancer detection for those living here in Bucks.”
Part of a major upgrade of mobile mammography across Buckinghamshire, which has already seen the implementation of a mobile screening unit in the North of the county, (funded by the Trust,) means that the focus now is to galvanise support through a major fundraising drive to be able to equip the South with a brand-new mobile breast screening unit.
In Bucks, during the period January – December 2024, 27,609 women were invited to attend routine breast screening appointments, with 815 requiring further assessment: “For some of these women, cancer was ruled out but 179 were diagnosed with cancer,” explained Karen Shardlow, CEO of Scannappeal. “These are ladies who hadn’t felt a lump, hadn’t noticed anything else unusual in their breast, and without screening their cancer would have been diagnosed later and with potentially less options for treatment. This is why it’s vital to bring access to mobile breast screening into communities. Breast screening is essential in detecting early signs of cancer, often identifying small changes in breast tissue before other symptoms appear. By improving accessibility for women via these much-needed cancer screening mobile services, we hope to empower more women to undergo screening, and help to save lives.”
She added: “We’re extremely proud to support this kind of project and knowing the impact it will make is hopefully a great incentive for the whole community to get involved. Working in partnership with Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust Charitable Funds, we hope to provide a new, fully equipped, state-of-the-art mobile mammography breast screening unit to the South of the county within the next 12 months.”
Dr Vaishali Gada, Consultant Radiologist at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, added: “Providing the very best care for our patients within their community is at the heart of what we do. The unit will enable us to take mammography screening directly into the community, significantly enhancing our service by improving accessibility for local patients. Earlier detection of breast cancer gives patients the best possible chance of a positive outcome.”
To find out how to support the appeal, visit:
https://scannappeal.org.uk/appeals/mobile-breast-screening-appeal/