We Fight Back

Best Science. Boldest Community. Biggest Impact. Susan G. Komen for the Cure hopes to unite the community in the fight against breast cancer. Check out the video below and share with us how you’re fighting back!

Mammogram News

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now recommend annual mammograms for women ages 40-49. These recommendations pattern Komen for the Cure’s longstanding position that women of average risk should be getting annual mammograms beginning in their 40s.

Check out the video below, where Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure® Founder and CEO Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker talks about the facts of breast cancer screening on the CBS Early Show. Enjoy, and let us know what you think!

Share the Book

It was a simple, heart-felt promise, sister to sister. But that promise changed the life of Nancy Brinker and lead to the global non-profit organization Susan G. Komen for the Cure. “When Suzy died, my life’s work was born. Her meaning became my mission,” is how Nancy describes it in her memoir “Promise Me.”

“Promise Me” is the story of Nancy’s relationship with her sister Susan, her words to her  dying sister, and the 30-year-long mission to change the way the world thought of, spoke of, and treated breast cancer. Susan G. Komen for the Cure is now the largest private funder of breast cancer research.

The book will be released nationwide on September 14. If you preorder a copy now from any U.S. based-online retailer, Komen for the Cure will send a free, limited edition signed copy to your sister, or anyone else you designate. The directions on how to order the book and get your free copy are at www.PromiseMebyNancyGBrinker.com By sharing the memoir with someone you love, you can be part of the global movement to end breast cancer.

If you get the book delivered by the release date, you’ll have enough time to read it before Ambassador Nancy Brinker comes to Newport Beach on Sunday, September 26, to be part of the Komen Orange County Race for the Cure. Register now at www.komenoc.org.

To whet your appetite for the book, and to understand the importance of Komen for the Cure, there is an interview with Nancy Brinker in the June issue of More magazine http://www.more.com/2050/18109-her-sister-s-keeper

A Lifetime of Komen

 

(From L to R) Sue Parks, Nancy Enomoto, Eric Brinker and Chris Tannous

When your mother is the founder of an international non-profit organization like Susan G. Komen for the Cure, you become a volunteer at an early age, and for life. Eric Brinker is the son of Ambassador Nancy Brinker, the founder and CEO of Komen for the Cure, and nephew of Susan G. Komen. He visited the Komen Orange County Affiliate and shared how Komen has been woven into his life.

A member of the Komen National Board of Directors, Brinker praised the Orange County Affiliate for its “best practices” and explained that work done on the local level to break cultural barriers in the fight against breast cancer is just as important as steps on the global level.  He spoke about the lessons learned at a Race for the Cure in Egypt last year and about the planning for the first Race for the Cure to be held in Israel this fall. (You can be a virtual participant in the Israel Race, and even get a t-shirt, if you register soon at http://www.info-komen.org/site/PageServer?pagename=HQ_Israel_VIP)

Greeted by a crowded room of Komen staff, volunteers and sponsors, Brinker shared that:

• He was young when Susan Komen died of breast cancer, but he has summer memories of his beautiful aunt.
• He chaired the Race for the Cure this year at the Peoria Memorial Affiliate
• The California Collaborative is a leader in public policy at a time when many Affiliates must deal with state governments in fiscal crisis and the resulting impact on uninsured women who need screening and treatment
• “This organization doesn’t work without volunteers.”

A Million Reasons to Attend

Cindy Thomsen with Nancy Brinker

Do you enjoy golf? Do you appreciate wine? Do you want to be part of a “million dollar moment”? If any of your answers are yes, we will see you at the Reds, Whites & Greens Charity Golf Classic on July 26 at the Newport Beach Country Club. This will be the 8^th annual event and proceeds are expected to put the cumulative total over one million dollars – all benefiting the Orange County Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

The golf classic was started by breast cancer survivor Cindy Thomsen who was first diagnosed in 1998 at the age of 33. She loves golf, she loves wine, so she decided to combine her two hobbies into one event. A second bout with breast cancer in 2002 cemented her passion for breast cancer research and education. Having been a very young target for breast cancer, Cindy feels extremely fortunate to have successfully battled the disease twice and credits the improvements in both breast cancer education and diagnostics for her early detection and ultimate recovery.

Cindy chose the Komen Orange County Affiliate as the sole beneficiary of all proceeds from the Reds, Whites & Greens Charity Golf Classic. To date, the event has raised $867,000.

Eric Brinker

We will see you on July 26^th, along with Eric Brinker, the son of Komen founder Nancy Brinker and nephew of Susan G. Komen, who will be there to congratulate Cindy.  Go to www.redswhitesgreens.com to sign up to play, to purchase a tee sign or to attend the dinner and auction to celebrate with Cindy and her committee.

Nancy Brinker at Our Race

You think it’s too early to commit to the Komen Orange County Race for the Cure on September 26? People are already registering for the Race. One person in particular who plans to attend is Ambassador Nancy Brinker, the Founder and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. If she can put our Race on her calendar, you can too.

Brinker has a new book being published on September 14, just days before the Orange County Race. You can read an excerpt of “Promise Me” at www.promisemebynancygbrinker.com. The book will remind you about Susan Komen, the sister who was Nancy’s motivation to make a difference for other women fighting breast cancer.

The book tells how the promise to Susie launched Nancy on a thirty-year-long mission to change the way the world thought of, spoke of, and treated breast cancer. Brinker’s unparalleled success at turning $200 and a list of would-be donors into a movement that has saved the lives of women was recognized by President Obama in August 2009, when he awarded Brinker the Presidential Medal of Freedom. “In the months after making that promise,” the President noted, “Nancy lay awake at night wondering if one person can really make a difference. Nancy’s life is the answer.”

Come hear Nancy on Sunday, September 26, to be inspired. Early registration this month will save you money at www.komenoc.org.

Komen Ranks High

When you donate money to a non-profit organization, you want to be sure the money is used as promised. Susan G. Komen for the Cure is doing an excellent job – it ranks high with donors in a new study. The 2010 rankings of non-profit organizations from global market research firm Harris Interactive last week ranked Komen for the Cure as the number one most valuable non-profit brand and the charity people are most likely to donate to.

Komen also ranked second among the most trusted non-profit organizations in America (behind St. Jude Research Hospital). The rankings examined 1,151 organizations.

“We are enormously humbled to be recognized in this way by the public that we serve,” said Komen founder and CEO, Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker. “This validation redoubles our resolve to our promise to end breast cancer through science, education, advocacy and relevant support programs all around the world.”

Harris Interactive Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Justin Greeves, said of the top-performing non-profits: “They are working to solve many of society’s most complex and relevant problems in efficient, new, and innovative ways and have achieved personal relevance in many of our lives – that is why they are at the top.”

Komen for the Cure also earns four out of a possible four stars from Charity Navigator. Komen has earned this highest ranking for the third year in a row. The high rating reflects that Komen excels in successfully managing its organizational finances in an efficient and effective manner. www.charitynavigator.org. To make a donation to Komen Orange County, or to find out about fund-raising events, go to www.komenoc.org.

Take A Stand!

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has released new guidelines that could significantly change breast cancer screening approaches in the U.S., recommending against routine mammograms for women 40-49 and questioning the value of breast cancer screenings for women older than 75.

However, extensive scientific evidence demonstrates that mammography reduces breast cancer mortality both among women aged 50 and older, as well as among women aged 40 to 49.

Sign our petition and help us ensure that all women have access to this life-saving screening.

Advocates in Science

Chris Tannous, President of the Board of the Komen Orange County Affiliate, recently wrote an excellent article about the exciting new scientific developments that are moving us toward improved mortality rates for breast cancer in the next decade. Today, advocates play a role in the development of research projects and clinical trial protocols. Chris writes, “Advocates have put a face on the disease and remind scientists that their research must benefit those in greatest need of their expertise and experience.” And as Komen for the Cure founder Nancy Brinker pointed out in her visit to Orange County in June, no major advancement in breast health medicine or research has been made without the funding of Komen for the Cure at some point along the way. It really helps to put into perspective the vital role that Komen plays in the fight to end breast cancer forever. To read Chris’s full article, click on the picture below.

Komen OC Takes Our Promise to the Capitol!

Komen OC Advocates with our founder Ambassador Nancy Brinker (center)

On April 30, Komen OC joined more than 300 breast cancer advocates from across the country on Capitol Hill to urge lawmakers to support two recently introduced bills: the 21st Century Cancer ALERT Act and the Breast Cancer EARLY Act.   See how you can get involved in our Komen Advocacy Alliance efforts.