National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

by Robyn Wright on October 4, 2012

in Living

Pink RibbonYou might have already known by the pink everywhere, but October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Even though this subject is talked about often, there are still many women who are not taking action. We need to keep talking. We need to keep learning. Some points to think about this month and share with others.

  • Do Self Breast Exams
    Learn to do these – they are very simple – and then actually do it! If you find anything you are unsure about get in touch with your doctor. The quicker you act, the quicker you can be treated, and you can beat breast cancer!
  • Get a Mammogram
    It is not as bad as you think. Please watch my video from a couple of years ago when I had my first mammogram. I happen to have an appointment scheduled next week for this year’s. I do them in October because there are reminders everywhere!
  • Pink Product Placement
    There are tons of products and services that add pink to their packaging and ads this time of year and say that they are supporting National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Some say a portion of sales go to a related charity as well. Please do not feel like you have to automatically buy something that is pink over something else that is not. Sadly, there are many brands who simply use October’s pink as a marketing ploy and it really is just all about their profit.
  • Check Your Charities
    There are people who make up charities and take your money. Donate to known charities. Charity Navigator provides useful help and information on making good decisions.

I will have more about National Breast Cancer Awareness Month throughout October. I hope that you will take the time to read and share as needed.

© 2012, Robyn Wright. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: health, nbcam

  • Guest

    I defintly celebrate breast cancer my great grandfather died of it and my grand father died of it :( <3

    • http://www.RobynsOnlineWorld.com/ Robyn’s Online World

      So many people do not even realize that men can get breast cancer too. Much less common, but it is something everyone needs to be aware of.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002632865465 Krystel Warden

    i defientily celebrate this month my great grandfather and my grandfather died of it

  • http://www.redneckrosie.com/ Rose

    I like Charity Navigator. This is the first I have heard of it, I have always used the rule of thumb to stick with one that I know where my money is going. We have a lot lined up for Breast Cancer Awareness on our site, makes me proud that so many brands are teaming up!

  • Rosanne

    Two of my 3 sisters as well as myself and 3 cousins and 2 aunts have all had breast cancer. My youngest sister died of it @ age 46. I am 57 and have had it 3 times since age 43. Even though I am a medical professional-college educated nurse I do not believe that early detection matters. My sister and I both discovered it when it was considered stage 0 and were pinpoint marks on an xray. We did everything we were supposed to do. I will say we had horrendous family stress -she worse than me- with our mother and brother and I think that contributed to her death-not lack of detection. I NEVER give to breast cancer research although I give to a lot of other charities and causes as there has not been any change in he death rate.

  • Marge Bowman

    I was diagnosed Dec 14, 2011 with stage 0 LCIS in my left breast. I seen many dr’s who all wanted me to have a lumpectomy, radiation & hormone therapy. I have several family members who have had breast cancer, one died at age 40. I didn’t want to face that fate and after MUCH research, reading and talking, I decided I wanted to have a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction. Took many dr appts to find a dr who agreed with my decision but I finally found a WONDERFUL breast surgeon who said a woman should be able to choose what she wants to do with her body. I had my surgery March 22, 2012. Pathology found aggressive cells in my right breast. Nothing ever showed up on the right, not even with an MRI. My dr said within 5 years I would’ve been in serious trouble. I knew, I had that gut feeling, that I needed to do that mastectomy. I’m 6 months out now and so thankful for my early detection, my decisions I made and my dr’s. I didn’t need any chemo, radiation or hormone therapy. And my chances of getting breast cancer are less than 5%.

    • GlArthy

      Marge I admire your willingness to do your own research and yet, have not shown anger towards new discovery in your right breast. Keep your positive attitude up; be surrounded by those who will cheer you up thru any down times. It is people like you who encourages us to give to such a worthy cause! I am thankful that you are feeling strong.

  • http://twitter.com/rkosully Robin

    Pink Product Placement: I know “pinkwashing” is a problem…but I really love these PINK shoes I pinned that give 25% to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation®… http://pinterest.com/pin/188799409349971205/

  • Tiffany Winner

    sad about those companies making fake ‘pink’ products to sell and feed off people’s generosity :( thismomwins@gmail.com

  • Shannon Whitfield

    I’m glad to know about Charity Navigator, great info there. I’ll be sharing this with my family!

  • http://twitter.com/toothfairycyber Tooth Fairy

    I was sad to realize that there are many brands who simply use October’s * PINK * as a marketing ploy and it really is just all about their $$ profit!! Lets hope the number of legit honest and good companies far outweigh the bad. It’s really sad how big business and money appears to rule the world we live in…
    ladybugcda (at) hotmail (dot) com

  • Jennifer Peaslee

    I love that we take October to really think about breast cancer, but it’s really something we should be aware of all year-long. Our news station reminds women to do their breast self-check on the 16th of each month. jenniferpeaslee at gmail dot com

  • Susan Smith

    I like that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but I have noticed that the number of companies placing pink ribbons on their packaging have increased alot over the years and I wonder if they really do care about the cause and are donating some of their profits to the cause or just want the extra sales they think the pink packaging will bring

  • MichelleS

    I think a lot of us avoid this subject because if we are not affected nor anyone around us is we push it out of our mind. I think we think “it’s not happening to me at this moment so i’m fine”. I also bet the medical community adores this month. Don’t get me wrong, I believe it should be more than a month, but we could also be too scared of thinking it’s going to happen to us that if we ignore it, it won’t happen to us.

  • http://twitter.com/St4ceyNicole Stacey Nicole

    I attended a twitter party for breast cancer awareness and am so glad that I attended. I think I just put this in the back of my head and didn’t really think about it and hearing statistics and that you should start doing self exams at 20 really opened my eyes.
    Email – Stacey.brickner6@gmail.com

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