Tuesday, July 7, 19877The Battalion/Page 3 iw i w ■■nr mi State and Local Nurse: Self-examination gives early warning of breast cancer aim By Jill Kami Reporter Because of self-examination, Cindy White dis covered two lumps in her left breast two years ago and a doctor had her get a mammogram. Ine lumps were removed through surgery and tests showed they were cancerous. White, a registered nurse at Texas A&M’s A.P. Beutel Health Center, then underwent two mas tectomies and six months of chemotherapy treat ments, but she attests that she could have faced far worse consequences if she didn’t know what to look for. “I really encourage women to do monthly self- jexaminations and have mammograms once a lyear,” White said. “The earlier you find breast cancer, the less severe the treatment is and the [easier it is to get rid of.” And more women are willing to get mammo grams today than when White got hers. Accord- | ing to a random survey taken by political scien- ! lists at A&M for the Texas division of the American Cancer Society, eleven percent more women say they hear more about breast cancer today than they did a year ago. A major purpose of this survey was to deter mine to what extent cancer society programs in creased awareness of breast cancer and to en courage the use of mammograms. It was revealed in the random survey, con ducted last April, that the number of women who think there is a risk asssociated with mammo grams has decreased by 10 percent compared to last year. Also, there has been a shift in the rea sons women give for not having mammograms. One of these reasons is that women now real ize they can’t just rely on regular doctor visits. They also are more aware that they can have mammograms without a doctor’s recommenda tion and that mammograms are necessary even when a problem doesn’t exist. I he poll also showed 20 percent fewer people believe they are afraid of hearing bad news, that mammograms cause radiation damage or that self-examination is sufficient. It is important for a woman to have a mammo gram once a year and to do a self-examination of her breasts once a month. White said. White found the lumps in her breast during self-examination, waited four weeks and checked for them again, she said. When she found the lumps to still be tender, she went to a doctor, who in turn sent her to a surgeon who had her get a mammogram that afternoon, she said. The lumps were removed four days later and tests showed they were malignant. “When I found the lumps I really didn’t think they were going to be cancerous,” White said. “I just didn’t expect it. I was really surprised to find out the lumps were malignant when I woke up after my surgery. “Some women find lumps and then, not know ing what may happen, they put it off and the re sults worsen.” White was taken into surgery the next day for a modified radical mastectomy on her left breast. In a modified radical mastectomy, lymph nodes in the surrounding area along with the breast tis sue are removed. Two weeks later, she had a simple mastectomy done on her right breast. Only the breast tissue is removed in a simple mastectomy. a Students may enhance writing skills in career choice with A&M program By Jeannette Nicholson Reporter A Texas A&M student interested ! in writing may be able to make a ca reer of it without having to work in a newsroom or publishing house. In fact, the skill could be custom-fit to the profession of the student’s choice. Two A&M English professors, Craig Cowen and David Stewart, developed the Writing Specializa tion program in 1977 to give stu dents with a flare for writing a chance to enhance and improve | their abilities. Cowen and Stewart recognized i the growing demand for highly skilled and competent writers in business, industry and government. and said they felt a student trained in communication skills would have a vastly better chance at job oppor- A student can . . . create a specific-interest curric ulum. — Sam Dragga, program coordinator tunities than someone without such skills. Currently, about 100 students are enrolled in the program each semester, says Sam Dragga, assis tant professor of English and pro gram coordinator. The program has met with general success, he says. Students in the program must take at least 18 hours of coursework that should provide intensive train ing in communication skills. A grade of a “B” must be achieved in all such coursework before the stu dent can receive a certificate signi fying successful completion. The program’s four mandatory core classes are English 210, En glish 301, English 320 and Speech and Communication 404. These courses provide a broad range of training in communication skills ranging from argumentation to technical writing. The remaining six hours are cho sen from supporting courses, usually in the student’s major. Dragga says 25 percent of the classes in any major are usually made up of some kind of training classes in any major are usually made up of some kind of training in communication skills. Thus, a student can choose from about 50 different courses and is therefore able to create a specific-interest cur riculum. No special funds were needed to develop and promote the Writing Specialization, Dragga says, since all coursework has been provided through the existing curriculum. Dragga says students generally are first exposed to the program through their English 104 instruc tors, which serves as an effective way to “snatch” the better writers early on. English professors offer mini-courses to enhance writing By Pam Tragesser Reporter Beginning the second week in September, students, faculty and community members can again participate in a program de signed to improve their writing abilities. Writing Outreach is a series of mini-courses designed to develop or enhance writing skills, says Cindy Stevenson, English lec- :urer and assistant to the director of freshman English. The sessions will be taught by about 20 instructors and profes sors in the English department, Stevenson says. The instructors and professors will choose the discussion topic and at what point in the semester they want to teach the topic, she says. The sessions will begin at 6:30 p.m. in 120 Blocker. Three or four topics will be discussed each week. The sessions will be two-hour workshops, Stevenson says. These sessions will cover express ive essays, resumes and letters of application and rules of editing. The workshops will give students hands-on experience, Stevenson says, since an hour of practice will accompany an hour-long lecture. Toward the middle of the se mester, the classes will be one- hour sessions focusing on nar rower topics such as eliminating wordiness in writing, she says. Although Writing Outreach has been offered for several years, low attendance is one of its biggest problems because people don’t know it’s offered, Stevenson says. To change this, handouts will be distributed throughout the community. Stevenson says she is trying to put a Writing Outreach handout in the packets distributed at Fish Camp. “'There’s no reason for stu dents to feel like they can’t get help,” she says. At the end of each course, stu dents will be asked to evaluate the class and what they’ve learned from it, she says. “Usually, though, we have an excellent evaluation at the end,” she says. No credit is given for the classes, and the students pay no fees to attend, she says. “The people who come want to come,” she says. “They’re not . forced to come.” Some classes will require partic ipants to bring work to class, such as the course in writing a resume and a letter of application. This allows the teacher to help the stu dent on an individual basis, Ste venson says. Other classes are directed to freshman English students, such as the class in expressive and per suasive essays, she says. These mini-courses will help students learn the concepts involved in writing, she says. “This is not a tutoring service,” Stevenson says. “They can’t bring their papers and expect the in structor to help them with their (English) 103 paper.” And the programs aren’t just for freshmen or students in En glish classes, she says. “Writing Outreach should be for anyone who needs help in writing,” Stevenson says. OH ataloto. igortoi e doinf! ike. veto tel 7 uty ■et) Ml DIAMONDS largest selection in Brazos County No Questions asked. 30 day money back guarantee on all loose diamonds sold. (Does not include lay away or mountings) FANCY COLOR DIAMOND .83 Marquise shape diamond with G1A laboratory certificatate stating that the color is a natural orange brown and a clarity of WS; This diamond has a rosey/pink tint to it. Natural color diamonds are very REAR our price $3495°° compare at $8,000°°. V'V- w v' ROUND ROUND 2.87 2.05 2.04 2.03 2.02 2.01 1.83 1.55 1.26 1.17 1.17 1.16 1.10 1.08 1.08 1.06 1.02 1.02 1.00 1.00 1.00 .97 .96 .80 .77 .72 .71 .71 .67 .65 .63 .62 .61 .61 .60 .60 .59 .59 .57 .55 .55 .55 .54 .54 .53 .53 .52 .52 .51 .50 .50 .49 .48 .42 Our Price $8275.°° 7280.°° 4850.°° 4785.°° 7650.°° 5675.°° 2900.°° 2.2.95.°° 3675.°° 2525.°° 2525.°° 1395.°° 1345.°° 2250.°° 2895.°° 1975.°° 2375.°° 2685.°° 2895.°° 1950.°° 1345.°° 1520.°° 1840.°° 1200.°° 985.°° 1145.°° 1195.°° 1175.°° 760.°° 815.°° 975.°° 715.°° 775.°° 715.°° 895.°° 695.°° 930.°° 930.°° 695.°° 895.°° 865.°° 695. 00 875.°° 695.°° 795.°° 495.°° 845.°° 810.°° 795.°° 795.°° 695°° 650°° 695°° 660°° Compare At 18.500. °° 14.500. °° 9700.°° 9700.°° 15,000.°° 12,000.°° 5800.°° 4500.°° 6100.°° 4900.°° 4900.°° 2700.°° 2600.°° 4400.°° 5600.°° 3800.°° 4500.°° 5100.°° 6500.°° 3800. 00 2700.°° 3100.°° 3500.°° 2300.°° 1800.°° 2200.°° 2300.°° 2300.°° 1450.°° 1600.°° 1700.°° 1400.°° 1400.°° 1400.°° 1700.°° 1200.°° 1800.°° 1800.°° 1400.°° 1700.°° 1700.°° 1400.°° 1600.°° 1650.°° 1750.°° 985.°° 1750.°° 1625.°° 1550.°° 1550.°° 1275°° 1300°° 1300.°° 1350.°° .41 .40 .35 .35 .30 .20 .15 .10 .07 .05 .03 .02 Our Price $470°° 540°° 395°° 375°° 335°° 165 00 110°° 63°° 38°° 35°° 14 95 10 95 Compare At 985.°° 985.°° 850.°° 750.°° 750.°° 325.°° 220.°° 140.°° 75.°° 70.°° 30.°° 22.°° 2.99 Round GIA Certified I Color VS ] our price $ 19,500 Compare at 32,000 MARQUISE 2.78 2.14 1.23 1.10 1.01 .91 .76 .74 .71 .57 .57 .55 .54 .47 .47 .35 .31 1.80 .83 Our Price $13200°° 4888°° 2750°° 3200°° 1175°° 2585°° 1085°° 995°° 2900°° 895°° 895°° 895°° 795°° 695°° 626°° 425°° 425°° PEAR Our Price $3495.°° 1975.°° Compare At 27,500.°° 9800.°° 4500.°° 6400.°° 2300.°° 4950.°° 2200.°° 1800.°° 5800.°° 1900.°° 1900.°° 1900.°° 1850.°° 1300.°° 1300.°° 890.°° 875.°° Compare AT 6800.°° 3900.°° .60 .55 .55 .55 .52 .51 .45 .37 .31 1.52 1.15 .89 .83 .78 .71 .46 .64 .27 1.03 .46 .33 PEAR Our Price 1195.°° 795.°° 695.°° 895.°° 665.°° 695.°° 325.°° 350.°° 245.°° OVAL Our Price 5275.°° 2495.°° 1750.°° 1350.°° 1495.°° 1495.°° 375.°° HEART Our Price 1150.°° 335.°° RADIANT Our Price $2600.°° SQUARE Our Price $920.°° 385.°° Compare At 2300.°° 1600.°° 1700.°° 1700.°° 1300.°° 1400.°° 675.°° 675.°° 500.°° Compare At 9800.°° 5500.°° 3500.°° 2700.°° 2800.°° 2800.°° 675.°° Compare At 2800.°° 675.°° Compare At 5,200.°° Compare At 1850.°° 750.°° © % 1 I DIAMOND JEWELRY Large stock of diamond earrings, rings, necklaces. Just arrived wedding bands, bridal sets and diamond semi-mounts. GOLD COIN JEWELRY Largest stock of Gold Jewelry in the Area! Hundreds of Pieces to choose from. Rings, Pendants, Diamond Gold Coin Jewelry. Large stock of gold coin mountings for all popular Gold Coin Krugerands, Maple Leaf, Gold Panda. DIAMOND AND SEMI-MOUNTS WEDDING BANDS AND BRIDAL SETS 14 KARAT GOLD CHAINS Larges Selection Starting at $27°°. All chains sold by weight Shop, Compare, and Save Money Never A Sale! Just the best prices in town! Our prices are up to 70% less than what other jeweley stores charge for the same merchandise. Full time jewelry repairman on premises. We pay Cash for gold, silver, rare coins, diamonds and Rolex watches Since 1958. One of Texas’ Oldest Rare Coin Dealers 7. < r a College Station • 846 8905 Store Hours Mon.-Thurs. 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 9-3 p.m. Behind Shellenberger’s