October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month
I am aware of breast cancer. My mother had breast cancer.In the past decade we’ve probably seen a million products re-released in the color pink to benefit breast cancer research and awareness: from spatulas to Snuggies; candles, skin cream, pink pony shirts, stand mixers, and underwear. Every office I’ve ever worked in had a yogurt lid drive to raise money for the cure.
We dutifully licked our pink lids and stuck them in the cardboard box designated for such detrius.
You can hardly walk down an aisle at the store without having something pink jump out at you, begging you to consume and cure cancer at the same time.I kind of feel like these pink products are a gimmick to get women to buy more products. I don’t need a celebrity pink fragrance. I don’t want another Snuggie. I’ll pass on the pink Snuggie.
I have pink fatigue.
About 230,000 women will receive a diagnosis of breast cancer this year. 39,000 (about 15%) will die. (Contrast that with lung cancer: 100,000 newly diagnosed and 70,000, or 26% of patients, will die.) source.It’s estimated that 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. Of course, 1 in 3 women will develop heart diseaseand I don’t see a million red products floating around (the heart disease symbol is a red dress.) My mom’s breast cancer went into remission; it was the ovarian cancer that nearly killed her (what color will those products be? Maroon?)
I will probably have breast cancer someday. I’m not too scared because it is often curable if caught in time (and I intend to make sure it is with regular mammograms and exams.)
So yes, I’ve heard of breast cancer, but I don’t really see how buying something pink makes other people aware of breast cancer.
More Posts on TodaysMama.com:
I Think I Have Breast Cancer
6 Steps to Reduce Exposure to Synthetic Hormones in Food
Survivor to Triathlete
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