The National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program: 25 Years of public health service to low-income women

This article presents an overview of the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), a valuable and successful national public health program in the USA that will soon celebrate its 25th anniversary. Simulation modeling and other analyses have demonstrated that the NBCCEDP has significantly reduced breast and cervical cancer mortality among low-income uninsured and underinsured women in the USA, a major goal of the original legislation. The NBCCEDP has also served to build cancer prevention and control capacity in state and local health agencies and created strong and unique public–private partnerships aimed at improving women’s health. As such, the impact of NBCCEDP extends beyond the millions of women served by the program to include increased public health system capacity and effectiveness regarding cancer early detection and control for all women.