Sick of Pink (Breast Cancer Awareness Marketing Machine)

Boston Globe ^ | October 4, 2009 | Kris Frieswick

[tickles]

one wonders if the mortality is higher because so many men aren’t going and being screened as they should? Who knows maybe it’s time to push blue to?

[tickles]

looking that the parts of the body effected you have to remember the lungs are essential, you need them to breath, no breath, no life, you can’t just cut both out. Looking at the breasts can both be removed and you can still breath, perhaps that accounts in part for the difference in survival rates. you don’t need boobs to survive you do need lungs.

[Puddleglum]

I think the “help us help fight XYZ” stuff is a racket. My wife has MS, and we were at the zoo with the kids one weekend when they were having a “race for the run for the walk for the cure” to MS type thing. Everyone was beaming proudly and I just wanted to say “here’s my wife with MS - please make out your checks to her.”

[tickles]

I believe that February is heart month. Red is the color, kids do jump a thons and the push the little red dress.

[NEPA]

Some Planned Parenthood clinics provide mammograms to women who can’t afford one. That’s probably what the money goes to.

[visualops]

pittance of cash raised by Komen

You obviously don't know anything about the Komen Foundation. It's also apples and oranges to compare a single-topic charity to global corporations selling some of the most profitable items ever. For a targeted charity the Komen Foundation is awash in money, having successfully insinuated themselves in everything from cars to clothes to cereal, and not just during October. In 2008 the Foundation brought in $368 million in revenue.

[Hildy]

How much of that money went to the cause?

[visualops]

According to their 2008 annual report (pdf), they spent 7% on administration and 6% on fundraising. It's a bit deceptive since it seems like a low percentage, but it works out to about $55 million combined. They are a very big charity and no doubt they do a lot of good. I do think the notion of "eliminating" breast cancer is a bit ridiculous. The side effect of the very aggressive stance on cancer diagnosis are doctors who are in turn very pushy about having procedures done for non-existent problems -I was practically railroaded into a biopsy til I said hey wait just a doggone minute. They tried to get me scheduled for this without even having a chance to go home and talk to my husband.

[Straight Vermonter]

The incidence rate is similar but the death rate is considerable higher for breast cancer.

Cancer Type	Estimated New Cases	Estimated Deaths
Bladder	70,980	14,330
Breast (Female - Male)	192,370 - 1,910	40,170 - 440
Colon and Rectal (Combined)	146,970	49,920
Endometrial	42,160	7,780
Kidney (Renal Cell) Cancer	49,096	11,033
Leukemia (All)	44,790	21,870
Lung (Including Bronchus)	219,440	159,390
Melanoma	68,720	8,650
Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma	65,980	19,500
Pancreatic	42,470	35,240
Prostate	192,280	27,360
Skin (Nonmelanoma)	>1,000,000	<1,000
Thyroid	37,200	1,630

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/commoncancers

[Straight Vermonter]

MLB has a week every year where every home run nets mega bucks for prostate research.

It's Father Day weekend. The effort is run by disgraced financier Michael Milken. MLB does a similar effort on Mother's Day weekend for breast cancer.

[dfwgator]

Not to be sexist or anything, but prostate cancer strikes 80% as many men as breast cancer strikes women.

Where are all of the brown ribbons?

[getmeouttaPalmBeachCounty_FL]

While I support several events raising $ for breast cancer research, I have always made it a point to avoid any product donning that horrible shade of pink. Perhaps if it were a prettier shade of pink, I might choose otherwise, but milk of magnesia is not my color.

[brewcrew]

Milk of Magnesia is white. You’re thinking of Pepto Bismol.

[dfwgator]

Reminds me of when then-Arkansas coach Houston Nutt made players who weren’t practicing hard enough wear pink jerseys.

Well, they complained that making players wear pink jerseys offended breast cancer victims.

So they had to change the color of the jerseys.

[JustaDumbBlonde]

"Not to be sexist or anything, but prostate cancer strikes 80% as many men as breast cancer strikes women. Where is prostate cancer awareness month and the attendant multi-million dollar campaigns?"

Are you waiting for a woman to design that campaign as well?

[NonValueAdded]

Surprised there isn’t more focus on pancreatic cancer. 82% death rate?

[getmeouttaPalmBeachCounty_FL]

[ColdWater]

The Pirates really looked awful with the pink gloves, baseball caps and socks. And the refs armbands were OTT.

[BunnySlippers]

I don’t know how it is where you live, but here in CA the keypad at the counter asks you if you want to give to charity [right now it is muscular dystrophy].

If you indicate “no” on the pad, the cashier is supposed to ask you verbally if you want to give money to that charity. You have to respond verbally before they will allow you to pay for your purchases.

I find it irritating that one has to go through these steps to buy groceries!

[Hildy]

me too. It totally pisses me off.