Call on Breast Cancer: 'A lot of us are done with awareness. We want action.

'I have concerns when I see programs focused only on awareness

Breast cancer activists were initially happy for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but over time they feel that "awareness" never turned into "action."

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Daniela Campari, senior vice president for marketing at the American Cancer Society, said, "When I see Delta flight attendants dressed in pink, I thank them." Marlede McCarthy, director of the Rhode Island Breast Cancer Coalition and who has metastatic breast cancer, said, "I call it the puke campaign."

Karuna Jagger, executive director of Breast Cancer Action, an activist group whose slogan is "Think before you pink," said, "What do we have to show for the billions spent on pink ribbon products? A lot of us are done with awareness. We want action."

Cindy Pearson, the executive director of the National Women's Health Network, said, "The pinkification of the month of October, from football cleats to coffee cups, isn't helping women."

On October second, the National Breast Cancer Coalition put out a news release calling for "action, not awareness," and for the billions paying for awareness campaigns to be rerouted toward research. 

The coalition's new campaign is called Breast Cancer Deadline 2020 and has the Artemis Project, a research component, that involves funding agencies on developing effective prevention measures for people who already have breast cancer. Though the group is aware that the 2020 deadline may not be met with success, it definitely emphasizes the need for more research.

The main problem cited by the group is that funds collected by the sale of pink ribbon and "save the ta-ta" products rarely go toward research. On their website, Dick's Sporting Goods admits none of the money from pink product sales go toward breast cancer charities and others have a cap on how much they will donate.

Despite concerns for the allocation of funds, some money is donated to breast cancer research and in the last six years, the National Football League's "Crucial Catch" program was able to contribute $8 million toward screenings simply by selling pink products.

Cheryl Heinonen, the president of the Avon Foundation, said the money raised through Avon goes toward screenings for women who are unable to afford them and to provide care and support for those who are already affected by the disease, which includes child care and transportation to medical appointments.

Heinonen admitted she has "concerns when [she] see[s] programs focused only on awareness ... our biggest emphasis is on care."

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