By Marty Trieschmann

A 45-foot van in the parking lot of your child’s elementary school might seem an unlikely location for one of the most important medical exams of your life. It was ideal for Lyndee Braley.

The busy mother of three from tiny Genoa, Arkansas, population 972, had just turned 40 when she saw a notice on the school district’s message board that the UAMS MammoVan was coming to town.

“Genoa is so small. I was so surprised they came here,” said Braley. But Genoa and rural communities like it are exactly where the MammoVan wants to be.

Located in Miller County, Genoa sits in one of 28 Arkansas counties that lack an FDA-approved mammography facility. To fill the gap, the UAMS MammoVan travels the state — more than 300,000 miles so far — to small, rural areas to provide screening mammograms for breast cancer.

Just in Time: Genoa Mom Grateful for Lifesaving Visit from UAMS MammoVan