CIBC FirstCaribbean Raises Thousands for Breast Screening Program in Barbados

Thousands of dollars raised by CIBC FirstCaribbean through its annual Walk for the Cure event will go towards acquiring more storage and a new software system for the mammogram imaging tomography machine (3D) used in the Breast Screening Programme (BSP) of the Barbados Cancer Society.

Medical Coordinator for the BSP Dr Shirley Jhagroo made the disclosure on Tuesday as bank officials handed over $200 000 raised from the 2023 event.

She said the programme’s Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) is now 20 years old and a new one is “absolutely necessary”.

“Your donation today will be going towards this project as we speak,” Dr Jhagroo said. “The deposit is awaiting approval from the Central Bank to be sent to the providers, which is about US$75 000. The total estimate is US$250 000 but is to be paid over a period of three years without any interest and a four-year warranty on the entire system.”

She said requests for screening at the BSP have “quadrupled” over the last few years resulting in a shortage of physical space.

“It hurts my heart to see patients waiting in the corridor and a waiting period of four to five weeks for screening mammograms,” the medical coordinator said. “Hopefully, this will be corrected in the not-to-distant future, and [we are] working diligently on the improvement of physical space. However, I can reassure you, urgent mammograms are done within 24 hours.”

In accepting the funds, Dr Jhagroo thanked FirstCaribbean for its support and commitment as a partner in saving the lives of those diagnosed with breast cancer.

“Thank you for another successive, productive and absolutely amazing year of heightened awareness of breast cancer in Barbados. As a member of your team, I know that we have made a difference . . . . I would like to assure you that the increased number of lives that’re being saved every year by awareness and early detection is enhanced by your efforts in the programme. So, on behalf of the survivors, I thank you.

“As we continue in our efforts to save lives [through] early detection, we depend on your support. Please help us . . . until the exact cause and cure for breast cancer is found. We at the Breast Screening Programme remain committed to continuing our fight and look forward to your support,” she added.

CIBC FirstCaribbean’s Managing Director of the Barbados operations, Donna Wellington, told the gathering that the bank had donated over US$3.5 million over the past 11 years for this cause.

“We do this walk every year in the hope that eventually there will be a cure. Until then, we continue to join with our partner, the Breast Screening Programme and urge early detection; it does save lives,” she said.