As a breast cancer survivor, October can be a challenge. Everywhere I look I am bombarded with pretty pink reminders of my disease.
Before I was diagnosed, I had a completely different view of breast cancer awareness month. I never thought about the fact that people would sell pink products while donating little to no money to support breast cancer research or patients. I never thought that people would wear pink for public relations reasons and not personal reasons. These things can and do happen.
Erinn Dandley Courtesy photo
I now see that the breast cancer community does not need to see more pink. We need action, education and to fund research. We need more support for patients and their families. We need people to know more about breast cancer detection. We need more funding and awareness for other cancers that invade less sexy organs.
What can you do to battle pink-washing?
Only buy pink items that state what organization they support as well as the percentage of the proceeds going to that organization. Instead of buying pink things that you don’t need, just donate the money directly to a reputable organization like METAvivor. Use October as a reminder to feel your boobs, or pecs, for anything mysterious that may be hiding in there once a month.
Here are three breast cancer facts you can share as we conclude this pink season:
1.) Men can get breast cancer. According to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation more than 2,700 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and about 20 percent of those diagnosed will die in 2022. About 1 percent of breast cancer patients are men; due to this it is often detected later and is more advanced when treatment begins.
2.) Virtually 100 percent of breast cancer deaths are due to breast cancer metastasis, or cancer spreading, to vital organs like the brain, bones, lung or liver. This is also known as Stage 4 cancer. As cancer spreads, these organs can no longer function properly, and this is ultimately how most cancer patients die. About 30 percent of breast cancer patients will experience metastasis but less than 5 percent of research funding goes to metastatic breast cancer according to METAvivor.
3.) Although the median age of diagnosis is 63, per the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer does not occur exclusively in older women. I was diagnosed with breast cancer last September at 32 years old after detecting an area that didn’t feel quite right while breastfeeding my daughter. I have no known breast cancer risks: no family history, no genetic factors, had my first child before I was 30 (correlated with reduced risk of breast cancer), exercised regularly and ate healthy.
Despite this, I became one of the less than 60,000 people under 35 diagnosed with breast cancer annually, according to the National Cancer Institute. As a young, healthy woman I was not performing regular self-breast exams and quite honestly found my cancer by mistake out of concern for a clogged milk duct. Please use me as a cautionary tale and know what normal feels like for you so you can detect a change.
To help give back to the breast cancer community, I have organized The Chemo Day 10K Rainbow Soiree Run on Dec. 2. I will run a 10K (6.2 miles) from my home to my last scheduled chemotherapy appointment to raise money for metastatic breast cancer research through METAvivor.
If October has come and gone before you were able to have a chance to support the breast cancer community, I invite you to learn more about the run at donate.metavivor.org/Erinn.
Erinn Dandley is a Kennebunk resident, possesses a PhD in chemical and biomolecular engineering and a breast cancer survivor. She can be reached at chemoday10K@gmail.com.
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