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Bonnie’s Bus parked until 2021 because of COVID-19

KINGWOOD — A spike in the number of confirmed COVID cases has led to the cancellation of a visit by Bonnie’s Bus.

The 45-foot, state-of-the-art mobile mammography vehicle was previously scheduled to be at the Rowlesburg Clinic Tuesday, in Blacksville today and at Preston Urgent Care/Family Practice in Kingwood on Friday.

“We were waiting to see what the numbers would be over the weekend,” Jenny Ostien, director of Mobile Screening, Cancer Prevention & Control, said.

With more that 1,000 confirmed cases of COVID in Preston County the decision was made to cancel the trips.

“We’re going to be off the road until the middle of March,” Ostien said.

She said scheduling will begin again in February.

The Bonnie’s Bus program provides 3D screening mammograms and breast care education to women.

In a news release Heather Bonecutter, WVU Medicine communications specialist, said Bonnie’s Bus has provided more than 21,500 mammograms for women throughout West Virginia and led to the detection of more than 110 cases of breast cancer since 2009.

Many of those screened are underinsured or uninsured and qualify for screening through the West Virginia Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program.

Bonnie’s Bus works in collaboration with a statewide partnership of clinicians, public health professionals, women’s groups and other community leaders to reduce the number of deaths from breast cancer in West Virginia.

The program is made possible by a gift from West Virginia natives Jo and Ben Statler to the WVU Cancer Institute. Bonnie’s Bus is operated in partnership with WVU Hospitals. The bus is named after Jo Statler’s late mother, Bonnie Wells Wilson.

TWEET@DominionPostWV