Making Strides Against Breast Cancer is an event of the American
Cancer Society that is solely dedicated to breast cancer awareness
and funding for research. Since its inception in 1993, this
event has raised over $130 million that was then used for
research, education, patient assistance, and advocacy for
breast cancer.
There are over 100 walks throughout the United States that
are supervised by local American Cancer Society offices. In
these noncompetitive walks, participants often honor friends
or relatives who have been touched by breast cancer. Each
individual obtains pledges of donations for their participation
in the five mile walk, often getting groups of friends to
team up. Team members enjoy the companionship, good exercise
and festivities of the day. It is not necessary to actively
participate, however, as the raising of the pledges is the
main goal.
Last year, over $28 million was raised in the Making Strides
Against Breast Cancer events across the U.S. With this type
of help, the American Cancer Society has been able to award
$246 million toward breast cancer research since 1972.
The Discovery Health Channel has partnered with the American
Cancer Society to be a national sponsor of the Making Strides
Against Breast Cancer programs. Their goal is to help the
ACS to further awareness, research and technology in the fight
against breast cancer. They will provide as many participants
in Making Strides as possible with educational cards printed
with the guidelines for early detection of breast cancer.
In 2003, the Discovery Health Channel premiered a program,
Breast Cancer and Intimacy, during Breast Cancer Awareness
Month.
Each participant in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
walks can register on the day of the event, bringing their
pledges with them. Actual registration and pledge forms are
available to print from the American Cancer Society website,
www.cancer.org.
Janet Brown is a medical writer
and graduate of Loyola University New Orleans. Her personal
experiences with breast cancer have drawn her to her current
work developing breast cancer patient education and awareness
materials. She currently lives in Georgia.
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