Hope in the Fight Against Breast Cancer
Breast cancer evokes a lot of feelings when brought up, and rarely that feeling is hope. October is breast cancer awareness month, and we want to remind all of our friends that we are making progress in our battle against cancer. As to any story, there is good news and bad news. We need to focus on the good news in order to move forward in the fight against breast cancer.
First the not-so-good part. Breast cancer is still an extremely deadly diseases that has affected millions of women worldwide. According to breastcancer.org, approximately 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer. It is the second deadliest cancer among women after lung cancer. In Ireland over 680 women are killed every year by breast cancer.
Now for the good news! We have made great strides to decrease the mortality rate of cancer and to find ways to detect it earlier. Scientists have discovered which genes can lead to breast cancer, allowing women with a high risk of cancer to be more proactive and prevent the disease before it starts. Incidence rates in women have decreased dramatically, due to finding. Always remember to check yourself regularly or remind your loved ones to do so! If you’re not sure how to perform a self examination check out Breast Cancer Ireland’s video here.
Death rates from breast cancer among women declined by 36% from 1989 to 2012 according the the American Cancer Society. If diagnosed with cancer, less than 11% of women are killed by the disease within 5 years of discovery. Breast Cancer Ireland reported an increase in survival rates in the past five years from 75% to 82%. Scientists and doctors have developed better, more personalised treatments. More women are fighting off cancer and there are more breast cancer survivors than ever before.
How to Help
There are hundreds of charities and nonprofits that accept donations. Some charities are better than others. We work closely with Breast Cancer Ireland and Breast Cancer Research. Both are research-oriented charities who have made medical breakthroughs in the past decades.
It should be noted that a donation to the wrong charity can solve nothing. You should always know where your money is going. Please make sure your donations are going towards breast cancer research NOT breast cancer awareness. We are all very aware of breast cancer, we’re past that. Now let’s end it.
We are beginning to win our fight against breast cancer. To build on this success we need to make sure we are allocating money into the right hands. There is light at the end of the tunnel, some of the most brilliant minds on the planet can and will find a cure. This October let’s donate wisely so that one day breast cancer will be history.
Sources: American Cancer Society, Breast Cancer Ireland, breastcancer.org