Gilda's Club in Fort Lauderdale Encourages Mammograms

Fort Lauderdale's Gilda's Club hosted the event

When Rhonda Smith hears women telling her they postpone mammograms, she cringes.

"That's the worst thing you can do," she said.

Smith notes breast cancer survivor rates are disappointing among African-American women like herself , only 77 percent are still alive five years after a diagnosis, compared to 90 percent for Caucasian women.

Smith is cancer-free three-and-a-half years after her breast cancer diagnosis.

And she wants to share her hope with others.

At Fort Lauderdale's Gilda's Club, she joined more than a 100 women in a "Raise the Roof On Breast Cancer" event, encouraging others to get mammograms regularly.

"When I come up here, it's always like going to my home, and a familiar place," she said of the Club, which offers support and activities for all kinds of cancer patients and their families.

At "Raise the Roof," women linked fingers to make "pinky promises:" pledging to get checked on schedule, and to make the same promise with 10 other women.

Smith hopes to change perceptions and fears she says keep some women from getting cancer screenings. "That would be great."

To learn more about Gilda's Club click here.

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