A 2025 survey found that one in six women missed or may have missed a routine cancer screening over the past year. That number is why the South Carolina Cancer Alliance built the Pink Palmetto Project, and why Kreative Kimistry in Anderson, South Carolina, signed on as the only Upstate salon in the program. Owner Kimberly Cheatham’s reason is deeply personal: her mother died of colon cancer at 62. She says clients confide in her about things they won’t tell family or friends, and that trust is the opening.
The stakes are not equal across communities. Brenda Thorpe, senior community engagement director for the alliance, says data shows African-American women are diagnosed at later stages of breast cancer, and Breast Cancer Prevention Partners reports Black women have a 40% higher death rate from the disease than white women. A separate dermatologist-led campaign, Stylists Against Skin Cancer, is now training hair professionals to recognize suspicious growths on the scalp, a spot most of us never actually see.
For Suncoast listeners, the takeaway is simple: use the people you already trust. The Gulf Coast knows hurricane prep and red tide alerts by heart, but early detection is the kind of storm readiness we keep postponing. Next time you settle into the chair, treat it like a check-in, and keep the appointments that catch things early.
Have you ever brought up a health concern with your stylist? Tell us in the comments.
