Tell A Friend

For Asian-American Woman
For Hispanic/Latino Women
For Alaskan and Native-American Women

Tell A Friend is a program designed to help increase breast cancer screening and early detection through regular mammograms.

Trained volunteer callers contact 5 friends or acquaintances to encourage them to get a mammogram. This strategy is called "peer counseling" because the volunteers are contacting other women much like themselves. It's a strategy that has been tested and really works!

Why Is Tell A Friend Important?

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death among women in the United States (after lung cancer) and the most frequently diagnosed non-skin cancer among US women. Finding breast cancer early is the best way to control it. Mammograms can find cancer several years before a woman or her health care provider might discover it through other screening methods.

Many women age 40 or older have never had a mammogram, and many more do not follow the American Cancer Society recommendation of having a mammogram every year. These women need encouragement and support to get screened. Tell A Friend programs give this kind of support.

Tell A Friend uses a proven intervention (peer counseling) that involves one-on-one efforts by volunteers to encourage friends and family to get a mammogram. This special effort by someone she knows may convince a woman to get a mammogram, or it may bring her closer to making that decision in the future.

Trouble with English and the belief that cancer is an unavoidable fate are two barriers that prevent many Asian-American Pacific Islander women from getting a mammogram. To address these challenges, the American Cancer Society designed the Asian Tell A Friend program with materials in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Tagalog.

Encouraging Hispanic/Latino Women to Get a Mammogram and a Pap Test

Aconseje a su Amiga is a program that trains Hispanic/Latino women to encourage their family, friends, and acquaintances to get a mammogram and Pap test for cervical cancer. Program materials are available in both Spanish and English.

Circle of Life Program Designed by and for Native Women

The Circle of Life program trains Native American and Alaska Native women to contact family and friends about the importance of having regular mammograms. The program guidelines were developed to respect the values of native communities, and in particular, to gain the support of tribal leaders at every phase. Women from 13 tribes helped revise the program in 2002.

For more information about breast cancer, becoming a Tell A Friend volunteer, or enlisting your organization as a Tell A Friend partner, call us toll-free at 1-800-ACS-2345 (1-800-227-2345).

Additional American Cancer Society Information

We have selected some related information that may also be helpful to you. These materials may be ordered from our toll-free number, 1-800-ACS-2345.Breast Cancer

Mammography and Other Breast Imaging Procedures

Web Sites

American Cancer Society Cancer Survivors Network (CSN)

Revised: 5/04/2006