Brandi Montgomery

Brookie Madison
Montrose Waite
Savannah Walker TRT: 5:18

Anchor Intro: Breast cancer is the second most commonly

diagnosed cancer in the District of Columbia
with Maryland and Virginia not far behind
with higher rates than normal according to
Breast Cancer for Washington D.C. DCs
Ward eight has the highest incidents of breast
cancer, holding a population that is 93 percent
African American. Howard University
NewsVision reporter, Brookie Madison,
talked with the DC community, doctors and
patients alike, to see why these numbers keep
climbing.

SOT So ward eight has some of the highest

Font: Beth Beck incidence and mortality rates of breast cancer
Co-Founder BCW in the Washington D.C. area. An when we
opened Breast Care for Washington D.C. in
Breast care for DCW sign and wards 2014, there was only one mammography
Anacostia River facility east of the Anacostia River.

TRT: 14 SEC

VO: AS RESEARCHED BY BREAST CANCER

FOR WASHINGTON DC, WARD EIGHT
B-roll: HAS 173.9 INCIDENTS PER 100,000
Southeast Neighborhood PEOPLE. THIS IS ALARMING SINCE
Patient getting Mammography BLACK WOMEN HAVE HIGHER
Cancer centers MORTALITY RATES FOR BREAST
SE residents, neighborhoods, housing, etc. CANCER AND SINCE WARD EIGHT IS 93
PERCENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN, WITH
TRT: 17 SEC OVER 36 THOUSAND RESIDENTS BEING
BLACK WOMEN.

VO: DOCTORS, LIKE DR. DEWITTY,

ATTRIBUTE PART OF THE PROBLEM OF
Dr. Dewitty HIGHER RATES OF BREAST CANCER TO
Dr. Dewitty walking down the hall THE LACK OF SCREENING AVAILABLE
Mammography centers TO WARD EIGHT CITIZENS, AS WELL AS
Dressing room THE NEGLIGENCE OF RESIDENTS TO
GO OUT AND GET THE SCREENINGS.
TRT:10 SEC
SOT If you dont have certain facilities closeby,
then you may not want to get on a bus and
Font: Dr. Robert Dewitty travel across town to go get it done. But
Providence Hospital women have to realize, this is one of the most
TRT: 13 SEC important tests that they can take.

VO: TINA JOHNSON, HAVING WORKED IN

HEALTHCARE, KNOWS HOW HARD IT
Providence Hospital Signs IS TO HAVE ACCESS TO A FACILITY
AND HAVING ADDED STRESSORS THAT
TRT: 8 SEC MAY CAUSE YOU TO PUT OFF GETTING
YOUR MAMMOGRAPHY SCREENING.

SOT If its just one center why is that people are

Font: Tina Johnson not going to that center. Why cant I got to a
Breast Cancer Survivor facility like Howard University, thats not in
HUH sign the area that I live in. Say a woman has 3 or 4
B-roll of kids running behind parent kids and they have to take these children with
them to the doctors. So a lot of times being a
TRT: 20 SEC mom you put it off.

VO: BREAST CANCER TECHNOLOGY HAS

IMPROVED TO ALLOW FOR A 3-D
B-roll: MAMMOGRAPHY SCREENING, WHICH
Mammography machine TAKES IMAGES IN SLICES AND ALSO
Iona demonstrating how 3-d machine works HELPS DOCTORS TO POSSIBLY DETECT
AND TREAT BREAST CANCER EARLIER.
TRT: 13 SEC THIS DETECTION IS ESPECIALLY
HELPFUL FOR WOMEN WITH MORE
DENSE BREASTS AS WELL.

SOT: With the radiologist being able to see

underlying breast tissue there are less call
FONT: Iona Trusty back rates and better detections, so thats
Mammography Supervisor another benefit to having mammograms not
Mammography demonstration only done on a regular basis, but also with the
TRT: 13 SEC implementation of 3-D.

SOT Screening with digital mammography is a

really good tool for finding breast cancers and
Font: Dr. Lori Wilson it has been the standard tool for us and it has
Howard University Hospital been the standard tool for us. Im hoping that
what well find is that 3-d may help us to see
TRT: 14 SEC it in a different way and identify more.

Bridge Stand-Up: BREAST CARE FOR WASHINGTON DC IS

 THE ONLY FACILITY IN WARD EIGHT
TRT: 18 SEC THAT OFFERS 3-D MAMMOGRAPHY
SCREENING. ALTHOUGH THIS
TECHNOLOGY IS HELPFUL WITH
DIAGNOSING BREAST CANCER, IT IS
NOT THE STANDARD FOR DIAGNOSIS.
SOME FACILITIES AND INSURERS DO
NOT COVER OR INCLUDE 3-D
MAMMOGRAPHY SCREENINGS.
MEANING ALONG WITH ACCESS TO
SCREENING, THE LACK OF HEALTH
CARE IS ANOTHER CONTRIBUTING
FACTOR TO THE HIGHER RATES OF
BREAST CANCER.

VO: THE AVAILABILITY OF

MAMMOGRAPHY IN THE DISTRICT
B-roll: VARIES. FIFTEEN PLACES OFFER
15 Mammography screenings MAMMOGRAPHY SCREENINGS, WITH
UMC Sign ONLY ONE BEING IN SOUTHEAST AND
Washington SOUTHWEST. MAJORITY ARE IN
Medstar Location NORTHWEST. THESE LOCATIONS POSE
Breast cancer for Washington D.C. A PROBLEM FOR ACCESSIBILITY AND
COVERAGE.
TRT: 12 SEC

Font: Dr. Robert Dewitty Institutions a lot of times now, cant treat
Providence Hospital patients, really, who dont have some kind of
Chemo Chair coverage. In America, spending cash for these
Tools services is almost formidable.
TRT: 12 SEC

VO: BREAST CANCER SURVIVOR VICKI

RUSSELL-WALTON, BEING
B-roll: MISDIAGNOSED FOUR TIMES IN 2007,
EXPLAINS HOW AS A MARYLAND
Walton at Pinkie party RESIDENT, SHE HAD TO LOOK FOR
OTHER WAYS TO COVER HER
TRT: 12 SEC EXPENSES THAT ACCUMULATED WITH
HER TREATMENT OF BREAST CANCER.

Font: Vicki Russell-Walton
Its In the Genes, LLC
TRT: 18 SEC
Your medicine, your doctor's visits, and your
copay those are are all three different
payments. Theyre not the same. So even if
you have money for your doctors visit, you
wont have it for you copay. My
 chemotherapy was almost $7,000 every
friday. Who can afford that?

VO: DOCTORS REPEATEDLY STRESS NO

MATTER THE AMOUNT OF FACILITIES
B-roll: AVAILABLE, YEARLY MAMMOGRAM
Breast cancer signs SCREENINGS ARE VITAL. SKIPPING
Breast diagrams ONE YEAR WOULD HAVE MADE ALL
THE DIFFERENCE FOR JOHNSON.
TRT: 10 SEC

Font: Tina Johnson I probably could have avoided getting breast

Survivor cancer in 2006 if I had went to my doctor in
TRT: 15 SEC 2005 to get my mammogram done.

VO: BOTH WALTON AND JOHNSON HAVE A

FAMILY HISTORY OF BREAST CANCER,
B-roll; JOHNSON HAS THE BRCA GENE IN HER
Johnson in pictures with mother and twin FAMILY, YET THEY STILL NEGLECTED
sister TO GET THEIR ANNUAL
Family photos MAMMOGRAMS BEFORE BEING
DIAGNOSED.
TRT: 11 SEC

SOT The problem is that women need to get a

Font: Dr. Dewitty mammogram.
Providence Hospital

TRT: 4 SEC

Font: Vicki Russell-Walton Because not me, never me. Im that chick. I
Its In the Genes, LLC had stuff to do. I was on my way climbing the
corporate ladder. And I was on my job for
TRT: 11 SEC little less than a year.

VO: DR. WILSON, BEING A SURVIVOR

HERSELF, USES THAT TO HER
Dr Wilson at her desk ADVANTAGE WHEN DEALING WITH
TRT: 5 SEC BREAST CANCER PATIENTS.

Font: Dr. Lori Wilson Its given me a lot of insight and actually its
Division Chief of Surgical Oncology given me a unique voice that isnt commonly
Howard Hospital shared. So, I am blessed to know that I can
TRT: 14 SEC understand my patients, but also I can
understand the medical aspects that go on
behind that.
Font: Dr. Robert Dewitty Prevention of breast cancer is very difficult
Providence Hospital its not like lung cancer that can be associated
with smoking. We know that certain people
Pan of his accolades and certificates on the perhaps who are overweight may get more
wall breast cancer, and Im saying may. And the
reason may be because breast cancer is a
TRT: 24 SEC hormonal diseases.

Dr. Lori Wilson The recommendations are that you have a 150
Division Chief of Surgical Oncology minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of
Howard Hospital vigorous exercise every week.

TRT: 7 sec

VO: IT IS ALSO RECOMMENDED THAT

Breast Cancer board WOMEN STAY WITHIN 20 TO 30
Cancer center POUNDS OF THE WEIGHT YOU WERE
Diagram of a breast FROM HIGH SCHOOL, IN ADDITION TO
EATING HEALTHY AND GETTING
TRT: 13 SEC REGULAR CHECK UPS, ESPECIALLY
ONCE YOU REACH THE AGE OF FORTY.
IM BROOKIE MADISON WITH HUS
NEWSVISION.

Anchor Tag: For more on how to stay ahead of breast

cancer, or the best ways to cope if you already
do, please visit www.cancer.gov.