Our Impact
Since our debut in 2011, Susan G. Komen Bahamas Race for the Cure® has contributed to many advances in the fight against breast cancer. Our organization, with the help of our NGOs, has helped transform the way Bahamians view and talk about the disease. Our funding has helped to turn breast cancer patients into breast cancer survivors. We have seen:
- More research. The Bahamas Breast Cancer Initiative Foundation (BBCIF) has tested more than 1,000 Bahamian women for the BRCA1 gene. Approximately 23% of Bahamian women diagnosed with breast cancer carry the BRCA1 gene mutation. The cost to conduct the genetic testing costs between $4,000 to $5,000. The BBCIF administers the tests for $100.
- Equipment. Komen Bahamas’ funding has helped the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) to purchase an additional mammography workstation for its new digital mammography machine in the Radiology Unit, PMH. The additional workstation allows more efficiency of mammogram reports for patients and allows radiologists in the department to double the rate of mammograms per day by generating reports quicker, thus improving overall service for breast cancer screening for patients.
- Portacaths. Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group, one of Komen Bahamas’ NGOs, has a mandate to provide portacaths to Bahamian women, many of whom cannot afford the instrument. The device is surgically implanted and chemotherapy is administered through it. Komen Bahamas’ funding allows the organization to purchase these instruments for cancer patients, many of whom cannot afford them.
- Building. Funding from Komen Bahamas goes towards The Cancer Society of The Bahamas’ Cancer Caring Centre – a “home away from home” for patients needing treatment, particularly those patients who live on other islands in The Bahamas.
