“Positively Pink” & “Positively Blue” Screening Programmes!
As you will know Positively Pink is a Mijas based charity and its sole purpose is to raise the necessary funds to provide education, support and a FREE breast screening programme to British Women & Men who live on the Costa del Sol.
The screening programme is a comprehensive screening process (Gold Standard) that includes a consultation, physical examination, health education, a mammogram or ultrasound or in some cases both and an English translation of the result(s). This is carried out in conjunction with Clinica Medicare, a Nurse led British health centre based in La Cala de Mijas and Dr David Deardon a UK trained Specialist and the head of The British Surgical Clinic. Medicare and its medical team provide their time, clinic space and expertise free of charge for the charity.
During the 2012 screening programme over 420 men and women accessed the FREE programme with 10 ladies receiving a positive diagnosis but all are being treated and doing well. During the 2012 programme Positively Pink spent in excess of €35,700.00 to ensure that screening is available to all UK expatriates living on the Costa del Sol regardless of age or circumstances.
Lorraine Palmer the founder of Positively Pink believes that “early detection is your best protection” and this certainly proved to be the case during the 2012 campaign. The majority of the Ladies who received a positive diagnosis would not have ordinarily been screened via the State screening programme as they are over the upper age limit. Positively Pink has an amazing calendar of events planned for 2013, starting with the Karting Challenge to be held at Funny Beach on the 15th June 2013. The charity remains committed to raising the necessary funds to continue with the FREE screening programme. All funds raised by Positively Pink are used solely to cover the costs of the ultrasounds and mammograms, all of the volunteers who run and support the charity do so without any cost to the charity. All administration costs are absorbed by the El Oceano Hotel & Spa.
In January 2013 Positively Pink launched a new Charity solely for men, Positively Blue. This has been set up to duplicate the services of Positively Pink and raise sufficient funds to provide a FREE screening programme for Prostate and testicular cancer. In conjunction with Clinica Medicare and Dr Wolfgang Kleimeier of Clinica Urologica de Marbella, an established and well respected Specialist in Urology.
FREE PSA blood tests for prostate cancer and a full programme of education, information and support for testicular cancer will be available for all British Men living on the Costa del Sol.
Prostate cancer is a common cancer in older men. Every year 22,000 men are diagnosed in the UK alone. Around 8 in 10 cases occur in men over the age of 65. It is rare in men under 50. Unlike many other cancers, prostate cancer is often present for many years without you realising it. This is because in many cases the cancer is slow growing and can take many years to cause any symptoms.
Although uncommon, cancer of the testis is the most common cancer in young men in the UK. About 1 in 500 men between the ages of 15 and 50 develop cancer of the testis. The exact cause is not known. However, if caught early it is one of the easiest cancers to treat and cure.
We are delighted to confirm to you that appointments for both Positively Pink & Positively Blue are available to book by calling Clinica Medicare on 952 835 776.
The programme will run every Tuesday (every other for Positively Blue), commencing on the 4th June and will run until the middle of December 2013, with appointments being made on a 1st come 1st served basis.
IMPORTANT NOTE: as in previous years the screenings are offered free of charge, but the charity would ask all attendees to the programmes to be generous with any donations they wish to make, as these funds help the charity fund future years programmes.”