Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an international health campaign that lasts for the month of October and serves to increase global awareness of breast cancer. In the United States, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month was first established as a weeklong event in 1985 as a partnership between the American Cancer Society and the pharmaceutical division of Imperial Chemical Industries. Betty Ford helped in the event’s organization, as she herself was a survivor of breast cancer, diagnosed when her husband, Gerald Ford, was President of the United States. Since 1985, similar campaigns have been adopted in countries around the world, and today, nonprofit organizations, government agencies and medical societies have teamed up to promote breast cancer awareness on a much larger scale.
Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2020, an estimated 276,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S., as well as 48,530 new cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer. Further, about 1 in 8 U.S. women will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime, and for women in the U.S., breast cancer death rates are higher than those for any other cancer second to lung cancer.
The early goal of Breast Cancer Awareness Month was to educate women about breast cancer and detection tests while promoting mammograms as an important tool. However, global disparities in screening and treatment, as well as the persistently high incidence of breast cancer on a global scale, has led to increased education efforts internationally. Today, funds for breast cancer research and education are raised for various foundations across the world.
In 1992, Estée Lauder cosmetics was the first national campaign to utilize the pink ribbon symbolic of breast cancer awareness, distributing a massive 1.5 million ribbons nation-wide. The National Football League (NFL) has become a large supporter of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and throughout October, nearly all players, coaches and referees wear pink ribbons and gear in support of the campaign.
Overall, Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an opportunity for breast cancer survivors and those diagnosed to celebrate their strength and share their stories. It’s important to take the month of October to acknowledge all of those women and men whose lives have been affected by this disease.
Below are a few credible breast cancer charities devoted to the cause!
Breast Cancer Research Foundation, National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund, Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, National Breast Cancer Foundation, Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation and Lynn Sage Cancer Research Foundation
Sources:
“Breast cancer charities: Where to Give — and where to avoid” (https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2017/10/03/breast-c…)
“U.S. Breast Cancer Statistics” (https://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/understand_bc/statistics)
“A Brief History of Breast Cancer Awareness Month” (https://www.bhachc.org/a-brief-history-of-breast-cancer-awareness-month/)
“Breast Cancer Awareness Month” (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Breast-Cancer-Awareness-Month)