Nov. 22, 2010 | When the women of Ashley County put their minds to something, there’s no stopping them.

For the sixth consecutive year, Ashley County Cares, a grassroots group of about 20 south Arkansas women, made a significant donation benefiting breast cancer screening, education and research programs at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

Representatives of the group traveled to Little Rock to present a check for $43,000 to Ronda Henry-Tillman, M.D., professor of surgery in the UAMS College of Medicine and director of the Cancer Control Program at the UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute.

“These women have pulled together, identified a need in their community and acted on it,” Henry-Tillman said.

While previous donations by Ashley County Cares have been used solely for education and screening, Henry-Tillman is enthusiastic about the group’s interest in funding research projects as well.

“This is another example of how our community partnerships have grown and are now playing an active role in research,” she said.

She, along with fellow UAMS researchers Thomas Kieber-Emmons, Ph.D., and Susan Kadlubar, Ph.D., presented information to the group about research being conducted at the Cancer Institute and about future research possibilities centered on topics such as biobanking, bioinformatics and the effects of environmental exposures on breast cancer.

Biobanking refers to the storage of biological specimens used to conduct large-scale research studies, while bioinformatics involves using information technology systems to gather and analyze scientific data.

Kadlubar also presented information on Spit for the Cure, one of the largest and most rapidly assembled groups of women established to aid in the study of breast cancer occurrence.

Spit for the Cure involves the collection of saliva samples from thousands of women age 18 and older and has accumulated about 19,600 samples.

Along with conducting an annual dinner and auction, Ashley County Cares members also have raised funds by selling homemade cinnamon rolls, sponsoring rodeo nights, selling T-shirts, organizing a 5K race and holding rummage sales, among other projects.