TELEVISION ACTRESS WILL TRAVEL TO CAPE FOR BREAST CANCER TALK

Actress Marcia Wallace, best known for her roles as the irreverent and witty receptionist on "The Bob Newhart Show" and as the voice of Bart Simpson's beleaguered fourth-grade teacher, Ms. Krabapple, today, plays the role of a breast cancer survivor.

Wallace will bring her message to Cape Girardeau for a free program in October as part of a local Breast Cancer Awareness Month program sponsored by St. Francis Medical Center and Southeast Missouri Hospital.

The program will be held Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at the Cape Girardeau Drury Lodge.

Wallace was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1985. Rather than accept her physician's recommendation that she have a full mastectomy, Wallace opted for a lumpectomy, a much less scarring and less painful procedure in which the malignant lump, not the entire breast, is removed.

Since that time, Wallace has become a national spokeswoman among women who are refusing to wait passively for a breast cancer cure. In May 1994, she and several other female celebrities, including Jill Eikenberry, Shirley Temple Black and Linda Ellerbee, were featured on the cover of Life magazine as part of the publication's feature story titled "Fighting Back Against the Breast Cancer Epidemic."In her humorous and informative presentation, Wallace encourages her audiences to rethink the implications of being diagnosed with breast cancer and to perceive themselves as fighters, not victims, of the disease. By sharing her own story, Wallace encourages women to become informed about breast cancer prevention, detection and treatment.

Wallace's presentation will last about 40 minutes and will be followed by a question-answer period.Although the program is free, seating is limited and reservations are encouraged. To register, contact the marketing and public relations department at St. Francis Medical Center, 339-6877, or the marketing and communications department at Southeast Missouri Hospital, 651-5533.