Its Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the Guthrie County Hospital and Clinics is urging women to get checked. 

GCH Clinics Family Care Doctor Austin Boekman says that breast cancer is the leading type of cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths for women in the United States.  Boekman explains that the best protective method for women is getting a yearly mammogram. 

“Really the best way of fighting breast cancer is catching it early. We have many treatment modalities to hopefully fight and cure breast cancer. However, these are typically more successful if caught at the early stages.”

Boekman says many risk factors for developmenting breast cancer usually have to do with a patient’s personal and family history with cancer along with their age and ethnicity. He says any woman that is above the age of 40 years old should have talks with their doctor about scheduling a mammogram. Guthrie County Hospital and Clinics asks that a patient must schedule an appointment before seeing a doctor.