Free Mammograms and Pap Tests

What is the HealthyWoman Program?

The HealthyWoman Program (HWP) is a free breast and cervical cancer early detection program of the Pennsylvania Department of Health. It is funded by the Department of Health and through a grant the Department receives from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

What services can I receive through the HWP?

Free services for those meeting the eligibility standards include:

• Clinical breast examination
• Mammogram
• Pelvic examination and Pap smear
• Education on breast self-exam
• Follow-up diagnostic care for an abnormal result  

Why is the HealthyWoman Program Important?

• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among women. Only bronchus/lung cancer causes more deaths than breast cancer.
• Breast cancer risk increases with age. 
• Caucasian women are slightly more likely to develop breast cancer than African-American women. African-American women are more likely to die of this cancer. Asian, Hispanic, and Native-American women have a lower risk of developing and dying from breast cancer.
• Fifty percent of cervical cancer cases are diagnosed among Pennsylvania women age 50 or over.
• African-American women over age 50 are at a greater risk for cervical cancer than Caucasian women.
• Cervical cancer is often diagnosed because of missed opportunities for screening, early diagnosis, and treatment.
• Human papillomavirus, or HPV, is the primary cause of cervical cancer.
• Cervical cancer occurs most often in Hispanic women; the rate is over twice that in non-Hispanic white women.

What should I do to stay healthy?

Breast Health

The American Cancer Society recommends:

• Self breast examinations
  • Women should report any breast change promptly to their physician.
• Clinical breast examinations
  • Clinical breast exams should be part of a periodic health exam, about every three years for women in their 20s and 30s and every year for women 40 and over.
• Mammograms
  • Women should start yearly mammograms at age 40 and continue for as long as she is in good health. 
• Women at increased risk for breast cancer should talk with their physician about the benefits and limitations of starting mammography screening earlier, having additional tests, or having more frequent exams.

Cervical Health   

The American Cancer Society recommends:

• Pelvic examinations
• Pap tests
  • Women should begin cervical cancer screening about three years after they become sexually active, but no later than when they are 21 years old.  Screening should be done every year with the regular Pap test or every two years using the newer liquid-based Pap test.
  • Beginning at age 30, women who have had three normal Pap test results in a row may get screened every two to three years with either the conventional (regular) or liquid-based Pap test.  Women at increased risk should continue to be screened annually.
  • Women who have had a total hysterectomy (removal of the uterus and cervix) may choose to stop having cervical cancer screening, unless the surgery was done as treatment for cervical cancer or precancerous cells.  Women who have had a hysterectomy without removal of the cervix should continue to follow the guidelines above.