October is breast cancer awareness month. Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women and the second most common cause of cancer death among American women. It will cause more than 40,000 deaths this year alone. Women are justifiably afraid of this disease, even though great strides have been made in breast cancer research, early detection and treatment.

The Susan G. Komen Foundation, founded by Nancy Brinker, can be given tremendous credit for making this happen.

Nancy Brinker: "The Race for the cure is now run in over a hundred and seven cities throughout America. Seventy five percent of the funds raised in each race stay in the local communities to benefit projects, directly benefiting the medically underserved. And twenty five percent is directed back to our national grant pool".

To find out how you can participate in the Race for the Cure, go to www.komen.org.

The most significant risk factors for breast cancer are simply being female and getting older. Most women with breast cancer have no known family history or other risk factors. In fact, fewer than one in 10 breast cancers are due to heredity. There is a lot of good news about breast cancer as well: we'll discuss this tomorrow on Dr.Donnica's Women's Health Report.

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Created: 10/2/2000  -  Donnica Moore, M.D.