Breast Cancer Awareness
The month of October is dedicated to raising awareness about breast cancer, one of the top ten causes of death in women- one that affected 40,954 women fatally in the United States in 2004. Breast cancer is a growing concern for women of all ages, and foundations across the United States and the world are diligently working to get reliable information out to women in all nations. One foundation, called "Time For A Cure," aims to inform the women of the world that "women can and do survive breast cancer." Mainly organizations, like Time For A Cure, look to promote breast cancer awareness, so that early detection and treatment can put more diagnosed women into the breast cancer survivor category.
One foundation in particular, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation, has single-handedly raised over $1 billion in cancer research funds since its inception in 1982. The foundation was started by Susan Komen's sister, Nancy Brinker, after Komen lost her battle with breast cancer, following three years of living with the disease. Brinker felt that breast cancer patients, like her sister, could make better decisions that might lead to survival if they were more informed about the disease that plagues their bodies, and she was right.
The Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation paved the way for other breast cancer awareness foundations, which work collectively to promote knowledge about breast cancer and its causes, uplift those diagnosed with breast cancer, and raise money for researchers working to find the cure for breast cancer. These foundations also offer services at the personal convenience of women in need, such as holding conferences for women's groups and schools, which suggest ways to discover and diagnose cancer in its earliest stages so that it can be properly treated.
The Susan G. Komen for a Cure foundation uses this pink ribbon symbol as a trademark for raising awareness about breast cancer.
Many companies also show their support for finding a cure by creating relevant product lines with a recognizable shade of pink, and often times, the pink ribbon that is representative of the breast cancer awareness cause. After these products are purchased, a portion of the proceeds are donated to one of the foundations, which, in turn, contributes the funds to research. For more information on breast cancer awareness you can visit the Time for a Cure website at http://timeforacure.org, and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation website at http://www.komen.org.
Sources:
- Center for Disease Control and Prevention: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/statistics/
- Time For A Cure: http://www.timeforacure.org/Home_Page.html
- Susan G. Komen for the Cure: http://www.komen.org