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This October, like every other October, commemorates Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We see everything pink: pink ribbons, pink bras, pink footballs during NFL games. In addition, we are told of various stories about the many strong women who have survived the battle of breast cancer. However as a black woman, I don’t think we spend as much time during the month discussing how deadly this disease is for black women.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2010 breast cancer was the leading cause of cancer of black women between the ages 45-64. Even worse, the CDC also reported that the death rate caused by breast cancer for women between the ages 45-64 was 60 percent higher for black women than white women.
Organizations and institutions that you can get involved in to fight breast cancer: churches, libraries hospitals, health care facilities and national organizations such as the National Council of Negro Women, The National Urban League, NAACP, The Links Inc., The Girl Friends Incorporated, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women and Black Greek organizations. One way black women can combat this disease is by getting involved in community organizations and openly associate with local organizations to spread the word about the need for black women to receive their annual mammograms and encourage their family and friends to do the same.
In the black community, we also have to acknowledge and support the organizations that solely focus on the black woman and our plight with breast cancer. One organization that has been successful at doing this is the African American Breast Cancer Alliance (AABCA). Founded in October of 1990 in Minneapolis, MN, founder Linda Finney, co-founder Reona Berry and eight other founding black women have been spreading the word about breast cancer. AABCA provides support both socially and emotionally to current breast cancer patients, survivors and their families. They also provide information to black women regarding annual mammograms.
AABCA’s various programs include a monthly support group where women with breast cancer are able to share their daily struggles with the disease in a safe haven of other women going through breast cancer. During these monthly meetings, the group also provides educational presentations about special cancer treatments, beauty tips, stress management, communications strategies and proper nutrition. AABCA has also participated in the National Komen Race for the Cure marathon. They provide special education presentations to members of their communities of all ages and disperse educational materials like pamphlets, DVDs, and brochures created to educate black communities in Minneapolis.
Reona Berry, co-founder/executive director of the African American Breast Cancer Alliance and a 24-year breast cancer survivor, believes that black women have a lot of reasons to get a mammogram.
“Black women have aggressive types of breast cancers, are diagnosed at young ages with aggressive breast cancers (under age 45), and don’t think that breast cancer is a concern for them,” Berry said. “A lot of women don’t realize that just being a woman and having breasts make all women susceptible to breast cancer, especially as they grow older. Many women—young and old—believe old myths that mammograms hurt. Well so does an inoculation (shot), but it is only temporary.”
Berry gave some suggestions for community activities that black women can participate in to spread the word about breast cancer awareness.
“Invite women of all ages to share a breast health event like ‘Get to Know My Breasts and Keep Them Healthy’,” Berry said. “Proper information is the key to learning about breast health and breast cancer because breast cancer is a sneaky disease. It also does not discriminate based on color, income, education or neighborhood. It is an equal opportunity disease. My breast cancer presented itself as a discoloration on my breast, under my armpit. I thought it was a mild rash from deodorant, but five months later I had a hot, painful, golf ball size lump in my breast.”
Another organization that is spreading breast cancer awareness on a national level is the Sisters Network Inc. Founded in 1994, The Sisters Network Inc. is the leading survivorship organization for African Americans in the United States. Twenty years later, the organization is still going strong with the membership being 3,000 with more than 40 successful chapters across the country. The organization’s mission is to immerse in community outreach programs that bring breast cancer awareness across the country.
Their community outreach includes The Gift of Life Block Walk, The Pink Ribbon Awareness Project, and Stop the Silence. In 2010, The Sisters Network Inc. held the first national African American Breast Cancer 5k Walk/Run in Houston, TX. One of their most successful initiatives,Stop the Silence, was created to break the barrier of silence on the topic of cancer or any other life threatening diseases that affects the black community. The campaign has appeared on everything from billboards and bumper stickers. In 2011, The Sisters Network Inc. was proud to report that their community outreach programs and campaigns had reached 3.9 million families.
Many black families suffer in silence with the battle of breast cancer; it is up to our community to break the silence on breast cancer so we can save more lives.