A three-day symposium on breast cancer research opened this morning in Iowa City. Dr. Sonia Sugg, a surgery professor at the University of Iowa, says the conference is bringing together more than a hundred of the region’s top experts in the field.
“This is a gathering of breast cancer researchers throughout the Midwest,” Dr. Sugg says. “We will be meeting and talking about our latest research and hoping to establish some good collaborations.” She says breast cancer death rates have dropped in recent years, in part, thanks to very focused research.
This type of gathering is very beneficial, Sugg says, as everyone has the same goal. “The way research works, it really helps to work with a group of people and put our heads together and put our resources together,” Sugg says. “We’re hoping we can at the very least meet other people and talk to each other about our ideas.”
Lung cancer is the number-one cancer killer of Iowa women, but breast cancer is close behind as one of the most common cancers. She says all women should get a mammogram screening by age 40 and every following year.