Bridgeport Hospital - Healthy & Wise - 2025 | Issue 2

While a breast cancer diagnosis often is distressing and difficult to understand for many people, it can be even more confusing and frustrating for Hispanic patients who do not speak English. They are, however, finding clarity and culturally sensitive care at Bridgeport Hospital’s Hispanic Breast Cancer Program.

When Vilma Castro-Melendez learned she had breast cancer, she was only 46 years old. It was a complete shock as she had a mammogram two years earlier and had been reassured by a former provider that the small lump she felt was nothing to worry about.

It used to be considered an “old person’s disease.” But today, younger individuals – both men and women under age 50 – are being diagnosed with colon or colorectal cancer. It’s a disturbing trend that is raising more questions than answers.