BEDFORD, Mass., Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Hologic, Inc. , a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of premium diagnostics, medical imaging systems and surgical products dedicated to serving the healthcare needs of women, today announced the expansion of its Promise to Me global women's health initiative to raise awareness and provide donations for women who lack access to cervical cancer screening.
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Introduced in October of 2009, the Promise to Me initiative is designed to empower women to make their health a priority and encourage them to pass the message on to other women in their lives. The initiative also has a charitable component - for every person who makes the promise and passes it on, Hologic will donate funds to support preventative screening for underinsured and uninsured women.
In honor of National Cervical Health Awareness Month, Hologic is partnering with the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC) to fund cervical cancer screening for women in need. For every person that "makes the promise" and passes it on through the Promise to Me website, Hologic will donate $1 towards healthcare for women.
"When women are educated about important health issues, like cervical cancer and HPV, they take action," said Sarina Araujo, the Executive Director of the NCCC. "To help battle issues related to health disparities, we are thrilled to partner with Hologic to bring cervical cancer screening to women that might not otherwise have access."
"Most women who develop cervical cancer haven't been routinely screened," said Edward Evantash, M.D., Medical Director and Vice President of Medical Affairs at Hologic. "The Promise to Me initiative will help provide screening to those without access while also raising awareness about cervical cancer. Education about cervical cancer - and other women's health issues - is critical to improving the health and wellbeing of women."
HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States and is recognized as the leading cause of cervical cancer. About 80 percent of women in the United States will have an HPV infection in their lifetimes. While most of those infections will clear on their own, some will lead to cervical cancer. For this reason, routine cervical cancer screening, which may include Pap and HPV testing, has been effective in identifying this preventable disease early.
About the Hologic Promise to Me Initiative
Hologic's Promise to Me initiative is aimed at empowering women to make their health a priority in the hopes that this effort will reduce the number of women who are impacted by treatable diseases. Worldwide more than 1.3 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer annually and about 465,000 die from the disease(1). Cervical cancer is the fifth most common cancer in women worldwide with approximately 471,000 new cases diagnosed each year and about 310,000 dying from this disease(2). By making the Promise to Me and passing it on, Hologic hopes to help lower those numbers, one woman at a time.
Information on the Promise to Me initiative is available through the http://www.promisetome.com/ website, Twitter, and Facebook.
About Hologic
Hologic, Inc. is a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of premium diagnostics products, medical imaging systems and surgical products dedicated to serving the healthcare needs of women. Hologic's core business units are focused on breast health, diagnostics, GYN surgical, and skeletal health. Hologic provides a comprehensive suite of technologies with products for mammography and breast biopsy, radiation treatment for early-stage breast cancer, cervical cancer screening, treatment for menorrhagia, permanent contraception, osteoporosis assessment, preterm birth risk assessment, mini C-arm for extremity imaging and molecular diagnostic products including HPV and reagents for a variety of DNA and RNA analysis applications. For more information, visit http://www.hologic.com/.
Forward Looking Statement Disclaimer
This News Release may contain forward-looking information that involves risks and uncertainties, including statements about the impact of cervical cancer screening and HPV testing. There can be no assurance that these systems will achieve the benefits described herein and that such benefits will be replicated in any particular manner with respect to an individual patient as the actual effects of the use of these systems can only be determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the particular circumstances of the procedure and patient in question.
Hologic expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to the data or statements presented herein to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such data or statements are based. Certain factors that could adversely affect the Company's business and prospects are described in Hologic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
(1.) American Cancer Society, Global Cancer Facts and Figures 2007, p. 3. (2.) Ibid, p. 3. Media Contacts: Hologic, Inc.: Olga Karagiannis 781-761-7069 olga.karagiannis@hologic.com Jim Culley, PhD 781-999-7583 jim.culley@hologic.com
Hologic
CONTACT: Olga Karagiannis, +1-781-761-7069,
olga.karagiannis@hologic.com, or Jim Culley, PhD, +1-781-999-7583,
jim.culley@hologic.com, both of Hologic, Inc.
Web Site: http://www.hologic.com/
