Health
'United Pink Campaign' raises breast cancer awareness
By Maxwell Arthur (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-11-24 11:06
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UFH staff celebrate the United Pink Campaign launch. |
In September, United Family Healthcare (UFH) launched the United Pink Campaign to help raise awareness and educate women in China about rapidly rising cases of breast cancer.
UFH organizations in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou were all involved in the effort, each holding their own "Pink" projects to help get out the campaign's message of three Ps -"Promote, Prevent and Present".
The initiatives included free mammograms, fundraising activities, education, seminars on self-screening techniques and donations to the China Breast Cancer Foundation.
On November 14, the United Pink Campaign officially ended with a China Breast Cancer Foundation "Healthy Road" charity walk in Beijing's Chaoyang Park, which Beijing United Family Hospital and Clinics (BJU) helped sponsor.
"The campaign turned out better than we had anticipated," said Lan Wang, United Pink's director and creator. "Our mission this year was to spread the word about breast cancer prevention and I think we achieved it with help from the international and local community."
Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases for women the world over.
According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the second-leading cause of death for all women in the United States and the leading overall cause of cancer death in women between the ages of 20 and 59. One in eight women worldwide will develop breast cancer by the age of 80.
"The international community was very eager to get involved with Beijing United Family Hospital to promote breast cancer prevention awareness," Wang says. "I think many of us have friends or family who has been affected by this disease so it was great to see so many people show their support throughout the campaign."
One of the United Pink Campaign's efforts was offering those who were screened a chance to nominate a less fortunate woman in the community for a free mammogram.
BJU conducted over 60 mammograms at its main hospital in October, many of them for charity.
"Early detection is the best tool to prevent the spread of breast cancer and is crucial part of an overall strategy for successful treatment," said Dr Philip Brooks, director of oncology at UFH. "Once breast cancer becomes more advanced, it is much more difficult to cure."
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The pink ribbon symbolizes the campaign. |
UFH facilities in Beijing and Shanghai are equipped with state-of-the-art mammogram, ultrasound and CT scanners to help diagnose a wide range of cancers, including breast cancer and other breast-related disorders.
In addition to seminars given by UFH doctors in the capital on women's health and breast cancer in October, the United Pink Campaign in Beijing reached out to the community for donations and other charitable activities for breast cancer awareness and prevention.
"It was great seeing many people wear pink ribbon pins throughout the month as well as people wear pink on Pink Day," Wang said.
"Even small spontaneous donations from around the city raised a huge amount of money that will go directly to breast cancer education and prevention," he noted.
"The seminars we hosted had great turnouts and I think many participants appreciated the education we were giving to the community. The most rewarding result from the campaign was seeing many patients nominate underprivileged women they knew to receive free mammograms at our hospital."
This November's Charity Walk was the United Pink Campaign's last event, one which brought many people together to show their support for breast cancer awareness and prevention despite the cold weather.
"The turnout for the walk shows that many people in the city truly care about the cause," Wang says.
While UFH will hold another breast cancer awareness campaign in 2010, the healthcare organization continues to support altruistic causes all year long through hospital initiatives and its charitable branch, the United Foundation for Children's Health.
