A $70,000 grant from the American Cancer Society will be used to launch the El Rio Community Health Center’s new breast health program targeting Hispanic women living within the Tucson Unified School District.

El Rio’s goal is to increase the number of underserved, uninsured Hispanic women over 40 who receive annual mammography screenings.

El Rio uses promotoras, or recruiters, who target Hispanic women to teach them about overall wellness. Those promotoras will be a part of the new program.

“It’s the American Cancer Society’s goal to ensure that every woman has access to life-saving breast cancer screening,” said Denis Cournoyer, district executive director for the American Cancer Society for Southern Arizona. “That is why this year the American Cancer Society is devoting the dollars raised through our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer to increasing breast cancer screenings among the underserved.”

The American Cancer Society also gave $40,000 to the St. Elizabeth Health Center to increase the number of underserved and uninsured women who receive mammograms.