U.S. Army Human Resources Command set aside Oct. 8 to educate employees on health issues and concerns specific to women.
The health day kicked off with 370 people from across the organization and Fort Knox participating in a 5K fun run/walk to raise awareness of breast cancer and the issues surrounding it.
Brig. Gen. B. Lynne Owens, deputy commanding general of HRC, spoke to the early-morning racers and urged women to do self-examinations for the early signs of breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, exceeded only by lung cancer. The chance that breast cancer will be responsible for a women's death is about 1 in 36, according to the American Cancer Society. Death rates from breast cancer have been declining since about 1989, with larger decreases in women under 50. These decreases are believed to be the result of earlier detection through screening and increased awareness, as well as improved treatment.
"I think everybody here probably knows somebody who had cancer, whether they survived it or whether they know someone who did," Owens said. "That tells us how prevalent the issue is."
Owens' words rang true for Maj. Jana Fajardo, who works at HRC as a logistics assignment's officer. She ran the race with her mother, two young daughters and a friend and her family.
"This is my mom, Jackie, and she had breast cancer and a double mastectomy in February. So we're out here for her," Fajardo said. "She's good now, everything's good."
Fajardo heard about the run from a coworker who also ran the race.
"His mom died of breast cancer, he told me about the race and we signed up," Fajardo said. "It meant a lot. Especially things like this that affect so many people. It's great friends that come out here and support."
Following the race, several health booths were set up at the HRC Resiliency Center educate attendees on the issues and concerns surrounding breast cancer and choices women can make to lead a healthier lifestyle and possibly mitigate risks.
Dr. Amy Braden, an oncologist from Hardin Memorial Health, gave a talk on breast cancer to some health day attendees in the Resiliency Center. She focused on the different ways breast cancer is detected, treated and prevented.
Braden repeatedly stressed the importance of early detection. Many of the people she sees are diagnosed with early stage breast cancer, but about six percent initially show up with advance breast cancer, where the cancer has moved beyond the breast to other sites such as the lungs, brain and bones.
"We don't think of it as curable at that point," Braden said. "It's treatable, but we can't take it away completely. Whereas when we find it at an early stage and we treat it aggressively, many of those people, not all, but many can be cured of their breast cancer. So, the earlier we can find it, the sooner we can do something about it, the better chance we have of helping them to live longer."
One of the attendees was an HRC employee who had been treated by Braden for breast cancer. She wished to remain anonymous as most of her coworkers were unaware of her experience with the disease. She underwent surgery for her breast cancer outside Kentucky, but has had Braden as her oncologist since.
"I had my treatment here in Kentucky; the chemo and the radiation," Braden's patient said. "Dr. Braden helped me through it and I greatly appreciate her support."
Braden's patient also stressed the importance of early examination saying," you are the best knower of you."
"You know when something is wrong with your body," she said. "A knot or leakage or something, is that normal? No? Then go ahead and have it checked out."
Women's Health Day, and the Men's Health Day held in September, were both organized through HRC G1 partnering with HRC Surgeon's Office.
The two events mark the first time the offices have worked together on a project for the command, said Lorrie Cary-Hill, HRC's wellness coordinator.
As such, Cary-Hill works to bring programs and services to HRC that can benefits its employees, both military and civilian.
The next wellness initiative for the command is the Health Benefits Fair to be held in the Patriot Commons, formerly known as the HRC Café, Nov. 5 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event is for all Department of the Army civilians to explore and compare different health, dental and vision insurance plans before the next open enrollment season which will run Nov. 8 through Dec. 14, said Cary-Hill.
"The fair will allow people to make better, informed decisions on health care for their family," said Cary-Hill.
Another event in the works is a Fitness Fair, which is held every January, normally the first Thursday of the month.
The fair will bring together fitness and health experts from Gammon Fitness Center, Ireland Army Community Hospital and Hardin Memorial Health to help people keep and New Year's resolutions they may have made about leading a healthier lifestyle.
The G1 will also host financial and retirement fairs early in the coming year. They will have financial advisers and classes from the Fort Knox Army Community Service. The financial fair is to help people improve their overall financial health while the retirement fair will focus on helping people plan for retirement and decide what the right time is to retire, said Cary-Hill.
The G1 will also host one last blood drive for the year Nov. 18. Two blood mobiles will be parked in the traffic circle between Buildings 1 and 2 and another will be parked in front of the Welcome Center throughout the day.
As with the Women's and Men's Health Days, HRC employees should look for more events to help them lead healthier and more resilient lives, said Cary-Hill.
"Every year I try to implement new events like Men's Health Day and Women's Health Day," she said.
For more information on the programs and services offered through HRC G1 Wellness, call 502-613-4259.
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