Mary Bird Perkins’ Second Annual Live Well Delta Event Sees Sustained Success

MONROE, La. – Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center’s Live Well Delta event on April 29 offered more than 100 no-cost cancer screenings, health information, and other prevention resources to residents in the 12-parish Delta Region of northeast Louisiana. Held at the Monroe Civic Center and presented by Healthy Blue Louisiana, this was Mary Bird Perkins’ second year hosting this event – an annual opportunity to provide life-saving early detection cancer services for this largely rural area of the state.

“Live Well Delta was welcomed back for a second year with open arms by the residents of northeast Louisiana,” said Myra Gatling-Akers, Delta regional manager, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “Though we serve the Delta Region throughout the year, we hear that residents really enjoy this event because they can take advantage of several health needs in one convenient and comfortable setting.”

During the April 29 event, 144 total cancer screenings were completed, including:

  • 60 colorectal cancer screenings
  • 40 skin cancer screenings
  • 25 breast cancer screenings
  • 19 prostate cancer screenings

Of the 81 individuals who participated, 49 percent reported being uninsured, while the vast majority – 72 percent – reported not having a primary care physician. In this rural area of the state, where healthcare appointments often require long-distance travel, annual cancer screenings are routinely missed. That was made evident through Live Well Delta data, showing 46 percent of participants reported never having been screened for cancer previously. Another 19 percent had not received a screening of any kind in more than three years.

Live Well Delta screening participant
A Live Well Delta screening participant undergoes a pre-screening evaluation aboard one of Mary Bird Perkins’ mobile medical units.

“Allowing people an opportunity to access cancer screenings helps lead to early diagnoses and better treatment outcomes,” said Renea Duffin, vice president, cancer support and outreach, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “That is why it is critical – and a main focus of Mary Bird Perkins’ Prevention on the Go program – to meet people where they live and work. We are proud of the incremental gains we have made here in northeast Louisiana. We know that, if we want to make a profound difference and improve health outcomes in this region, we must continue to host these types of proactive outreach opportunities.”

No-cost cancer screenings provided at Live Well Delta and other Cancer Center events are made possible thanks to the generosity of local donors, including the Living Well Foundation.

For more information about this event and other cancer screening opportunities, visit marybird.org/get-screened.


About Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center is a regional cancer care organization that has been fighting cancer for more than 50 years. The cancer care organization provides care at 10 centers in Baton Rouge, Covington, Gonzales, Hammond, Houma, Opelousas, Slidell, and Natchez, Mississippi, and its service area encompasses southeast Louisiana and southwest Mississippi regions. Mary Bird Perkins has a strategic affiliation with OneOncology and the largest radiation and medical oncology groups from across the area including exclusive partnerships with Southeastern Louisiana Radiation Oncology Group, which provides radiation therapy throughout Mary Bird Perkins’ service areas, Northshore Oncology Associates, serving St. Tammany and Washington Parishes, specifically the communities of Covington and Slidell and Louisiana Hematology Oncology Associates, which services the Greater Baton Rouge area. For more information, please visit www.marybird.org.