The Witness Project®UW Center for Women's Health Research
700 Regent Street
Suite 301
Madison, WI 53715
The Witness Project® is a culturally competent community-based breast and cervical cancer education program through which cancer survivors and lay health advisor increase awareness, knowledge, screening and early detection behaviors in the African American population in an effort to reduce the mortality and morbidity rate of cancer.
Witness programs are presented in the African American community through local churches or other organizations.
In church, people witness to save souls. At the Witness Project®, they witness to save lives!
At the heart of the Witness Project® are African American women who talk to other women about the importance of early detection of cancer - either as Witness Role Models (WRM's) or Lay Health Advisors (LHA's). They challenge women to take care of their health and that of their neighbors. They help people develop behaviors that focus on preventative health and appropriate medical care.
Witnesses or WRM's are ordinary African American women who happen to be breast or cervical cancer survivors and who witness -- or talk -- about their cancer experiences.
WRM's answer questions about their personal experiences, fears and concerns. Their presence as survivors is seen as a blessing and proof that cancer is not an automatic death sentence.