Providence Cancer Center is pleased to announce Safeway is providing $125,000 of the $250,000 needed this year to launch the breast health care registry project.

Providence St. Vincent Medical Center provides over 20,000 mammograms for women each year - more than any other health care facility in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Providence Portland Medical Center cares for a similar number of patients. This large volume of patients provides the opportunity to collect a large amount of data that can be analyzed to provide better care and hope for breast cancer patients.

This registry project will gather all pieces of information about women's breast care in one place - the Breast Health Registry database. When a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, she may see 10 care providers during her course of care including a surgeon, a medical oncologist, a radiation oncologist, a physical therapist, an Integrative Medicine provider, a visit to Transitions and meetings with a counselor. The registry will improve the patient’s experience and quality of care since care providers could more easily follow the entire course of medical care experienced by each patient.

Having all of this information in one place will allow Providence Cancer Center to learn more about how well care is provided and why. In addition, having this Registry will further the goal of Providence Cancer Center in setting the standards for breast care in the United States. Registry information would be used to investigate such questions as:

• When is it effective to use a screening MRI?
• How can we identify and care for patients who may be at higher risk of developing breast cancer because of genetic predisposition?
• Why do Providence stage 4 breast cancer patients have a greater than national average survival rate?

Providence Cancer Center is grateful for the support of Safeway so work can begin on this critical project.