Susan G. Komen Funds SGM Health Equity Work

 
Megan Lee
Midwest Queer, Former Blogger Scholar, and LGBTQ Heath Equity Aficionado

Susan G. Komen’s Mid-Missouri Affiliate is supporting the sexual and gender minority (SGM) community in Central Missouri through two separate grants aimed at breast health education and awareness in the LGBTQ community! The two grants, totaling more than $25,000 will go to support community outreach throughout Central Missouri.

The first grant, at $5000, will support the Mid-Missouri PrideFest held in Columbia, Missouri. Volunteers at Pride will speak to attendees about breast cancer risk factors and will provide information about healthy lifestyle choices that can reduce the risk of breast cancer. As anyone who’s ever been to a Mid-MO Pride can vouch, it’s a great time – and it just keeps getting better (and healthier)!  

The second grant, awarded to The Center Project (TCP) at $21,200, will fund community outreach and education in the LGBTQ community in and around Central Missouri. Research has shown that LGBTQ individuals have higher rates of the risk factors associated with breast cancer and, moreover, are often under-educated on breast health issues and are under-served by public health initiatives. It also doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that LGBTQ folks seek out health services and screenings far less than other groups in large part due to the stimatization of the LGBTQ community in health facilities (and, frankly, outside of them as well).  

TCP, Mid-Missouri’s first LGBTQ Community Space, will be hiring a part-time Outreach Educator to provide educational presentations and materials to LGBTQ folks and their allies throughout the area. These information sessions will be specifically targeted to transwomen, transmen, lesbian, bisexual, and queer identified individuals as those most likely to experience breast health related disparities. The Outreach Educator will also be developing a resource handbook that provides tailored information to LGBTQ individuals about breast health – super cool.

And, in great related news, The Center Project is currently accepting resumes for the Outreach Educator!

 Susan G. Komen has taken a great step in funding these projects aimed at supporting the SGM community in Central Missouri and certainly receives my accolades for funding work to decrease health disparities in marginalized communities!