Aldi partners with UHNM to provide free breast cancer screening in Stoke-on-Trent

Aldi has partnered with University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) to improve access to free breast cancer screening for eligible patients in Stoke-on-Trent.  
 
A mobile screening unit will be in-situ at Aldi’s Godwin Way store for nine months from Monday 7 October to provide potentially life-saving early breast cancer diagnosis to thousands of local women. 
 
The Unit will screen between 50 and 60 women a day who are aged between 50 and 70 and have been invited for routine screening through their GP. 

Speaking at an opening event today, Michelle Ellitts, Superintendent Radiographer and Programme Manager at UHNM, said: “One in seven women will get breast cancer in their lifetime, and early detection is vital. Those diagnosed early through breast cancer screening having a more than 95 per-cent chance of surviving, so it’s extremely important that we can take our breast cancer screening unit out into our local communities, making it as easy and convenient as possible for those invited to attend their appointments.

“We are delighted and grateful that we have been able to continue to offer this service to our patients thanks to Aldi.”

Members of UHNM’s breast screening team were on hand today to show members of the public around the Unit and raise awareness of the service in store.

One of the Mammographers on the Unit is Rozana Swinnerton. 
 
Rozana, who has 15 years experience in mammography, said: “When patients come into the van for their appointment they’ll be welcomed by our women-only team, who will then take them into the room to get undressed and ask them in private if they have any questions. The x-rays take less than six minutes, and we’ll do four standard pictures, a flat picture, and a side picture. We’ll need to squeeze the breast to spread the tissue to see tiny, minuscule detail to see what is happening.

“It’s nice to see patients at the end of their treatment who would otherwise have missed their cancers completely well and living a normal life.”
 
Michelle Walker, Aldi Godwin Way Store Manager said: “We’re excited and happy to host the Unit here on the car park. We’ve had several colleagues whose relatives have received treatment for breast cancer, so it’s nice to do some community work and show our support.”