Cheap X-Rays Planned in Drive on Breast Cancer

The American Cancer Society announced Wednesday that it will provide low-cost breast X-rays for thousands of women and send 2 million volunteers door-to-door in a campaign to promote early detection of breast cancer.

The volunteers will distribute leaflets, and programs in some major cities will offer breast X-rays for as little as $40 during the Breast Cancer Detection Awareness Program, the society said.

Breast X-rays, known as mammograms, cost as much as $150 in some communities, society spokesmen said.

Cooperative Effort

The campaign, to begin in April, will be carried out in cooperation with the American College of Radiology. It will involve public service announcements about detecting breast cancer in its early, highly curable stages.

“My job is to see if we can make mammography the Pap test for breast cancer,” said Arthur Holleb, the cancer society’s senior vice president for medical affairs. The Pap test is credited with cutting the death rate for cervical cancer by about 70%, he said.

Breast cancer strikes one in 10 American women, with a total of 130,000 new cases expected this year, the society said. If caught early enough, it has cure rates approaching 100%.