Think PINK!

What do Sheryl Crow, Shirley Temple, Olivia Newton John, Linda McCartney, the founder of the Girl Scouts, and my Grandma have in common? All of these influential women were diagnosed with breast cancer. Some survived, and some didn’t.

When my best friend and Grandma lost her battle with breast cancer in November of 2004, I vowed that I would be an advocate for breast cancer awareness and treatment. Of course I have made a huge point to my girls and close friends about the importance of breast self examination and mammograms, and I hope that this post will encourage all of my readers to do what is important for their health.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For more than 20 years, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) has educated women about early breast cancer detection, diagnosis and treatment. NBCAM continues reaching out to women with several key messages, most notably, the importance of early detection through annual mammography screening for women over 40, or earlier for women at increased risk.

This year in America, more than 211,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 43,300 die. One woman in eight either has or will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. In addition, 1,600 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 400 will die this year. If detected early, the five-year survival rate exceeds 95%. Mammograms are among the best early detection methods, yet 13 million U.S. women 40 years of age or older have never had a mammogram.

No one really wants to talk about it…but we have to be willing to talk and encourage each other to lessen the occurrences and deaths due to breast cancer. No, I am not going to walk up to you at church or on the street and ask you if you have done your breast exam or if you kept your appointment for your mammogram. But, I will remind you through this bog that you need to do it! (by the way, the baby in the picture is our sweet Bekah!)