Nis: Free Skin Checks and Mammograms This Saturday
On Saturday, September 12, Nis is holding free preventive checkups at the Health Center and a fifth Health Fair in Durlan, no appointment needed.
Have a mole that worries you, or never got around to booking a mammogram? In Nis, tomorrow, you do not have to put off either one. Standing in line at the counter is the only step you need.
The Nis Health Center is again opening its doors on Saturday, September 12, for free preventive and screening checkups. The campaign runs from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the institution’s main building, while the fifth Health Fair of the year takes place at the same time in Durlan. We previously covered a similar campaign in Indjija and Backa Topola, planned for September 18, but the list of checkups in Nis is far broader and covers almost everything the health center normally handles with a referral and a wait.
What You Can Actually Get Done on Saturday
At the Nis Health Center’s main building, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., several screenings are available at once:
- A Pap smear, a screening for early detection of cervical cancer, for women ages 25 to 64, in office 55 on the first floor
- A mammogram, a breast cancer screening for women ages 50 to 69, along with breast self-exam training led by the Polyvalent Home Care Service
- A low-dose lung CT scan, for people ages 50 to 74 with a 30-year smoking history
- A colorectal cancer check, blood pressure measurement, diabetes screening and depression screening, all through the Adult Health Care Service
- A dermoscopic exam of moles and skin changes, at the Dermatovenerology Department. A dermatoscope magnifies a skin change many times over, letting the doctor assess its structure, border, color and the pattern of pigment and blood vessels, seeing far more than the naked eye can
- A bone density scan (densitometry), through the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service
What sets this Saturday apart from an ordinary visit to the health center is that none of these checkups require an appointment. You simply show up whenever it suits you, with no referral and no waiting on the phone or at the scheduling desk. One practical tip: if you are planning both a mammogram and a dermoscopic exam the same morning, arrive early, around 7 or 8 a.m., before checkups across multiple services start piling up.
The Health Fair in Durlan, the Fifth This Year
Anyone who cannot make it to the main building has another option. The Nis Health Center, together with the Pantelej municipality, is holding the fifth Health Fair of the year on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon, on the square by the market in Durlan.
Blood pressure, blood sugar, body mass index and body fat percentage are measured there free of charge, and a skin and mole check is also available on the spot. A nutritionist gives dietary advice, making the fair a good option too for anyone who just wants a quick check of basic health parameters without going into the health center building itself.
Who Benefits Most
The campaign is most useful for two groups. The first are women in the target age range for a Pap smear and mammogram who kept putting it off because of scheduling hassles, since that excuse no longer applies. The second are people with a mole or skin change that worries them but who are not sure it is worth a separate referral to a dermatologist. Saturday’s dermoscopic exam settles exactly that question, without waiting for an appointment.
If you do not fall into the target age group for any of the screenings, the Health Fair in Durlan is still worth a visit for a basic pressure and blood sugar check, especially if you do not normally monitor these regularly. The reminder is simple: Saturday, September 12, the main building from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Durlan from 10 a.m. to noon, no appointment needed at either location.
