THE TRUTH ABOUT BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
By MANDE WILKES || It’s nearly October, which is to say that, as the leaves turn auburn and the trees go gray, everybody dons pink – the color chosen to represent breast cancer “awareness.”
And so the time is upon us for my annual eye-roll.
My reasons are legion, and I’ll go into a few here, but thinkbeforeyoupink.org has a comprehensive outline of what’s so wrong with Breast Cancer Awareness Month – and what’s so wrong with the attendant blitz of pink.
Mainly the issues are ones of transparency and hypocrisy – corporations shilling “pink” products don’t disclose the amount of proceeds which is actually donated, and many of those same companies add carcinogenic substances to their products.
Breast Cancer Action, the organization behind thinkbeforeyoupink.org, calls this marketing scheme “pinkwashing,” and has identified a number of complicit companies. Among them are Yoplait, KFC, Ford, and BMW.
Most egregious, though, is the pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly. The drug maker owns the synthetic hormone rBGH, a recognized carcinogen, which it licenses to food manufacturers. In a disturbing twist, it also owns a pair of popular breast-cancer drug treatments. In case you need a bit of help connecting those dots, that means that Eli Lilly is first profiting from its use of a carcinogenic hormone, and then profiting from the treatment of the cancer it helps cause.
The whole thing results in a circular feedback loop: thinking they’re contributing to the cause, unwitting consumers buy grossly overpriced “pink” products – products which themselves are responsible for the cancer epidemic. And perhaps most stunning of all, there’s no telling how much money – if any, really – from those sales are going toward research or aid.
Does this sound like the worst “awareness” campaign ever, or what? About it I have unmitigated rage. Maybe that’s because, as a woman of Ashkenzai Jewish descent, I may be genetically predisposed to breast cancer. Or maybe it’s because breast cancer is almost literally the last illness we should be worried about, in terms of mortality.
This chart depicts the staggering disparity between the causes to which we contribute money and the diseases that actually take lives. Breast cancer tops the chart for money raised, but appears toward the middle of the pack in terms of lives taken. What that means is that we’re ignoring deadly diseases, in favor of supporting a “crusade” with more pizazz and more sex appeal.
Like I said, unmitigated rage …
Seriously, it’s still September and already I’m seeing for sale those cloying “Save the Tatas” tees with the pink cursive and the weirdly-high neckline. And if I run into anyone wearing one these pink monstrosities, I’m liable to cut a bitch.
Mande Wilkes is a wife, mother, businesswoman, author, etc. residing on the South Carolina coast with her family.
47 comments
But it is the most effective health awareness campaign ever and there are effective detection and treatment methods
I’m going to run a counter campaign to all this nonsense:
It’ll be called, “Two in the pink, one in the stink.”
You didn’t know about breast cancer? You could call it an unawareness campaign, since it hides the fact that there are many cancers out there. It is just a sexist distraction from a wider cancer discussion.
Where is your rage for Will posting that video yesterday of the girl being humped in the parking lot?
Why should there be any rage about that? It appeared to be consensual and she was half of the willing duo who chose to do it where it could be video’d. Geeze, get over it already.
Obama has only attended 42% of his intell meetings.I think Will was just making the point that Obama has fucked this country with that video.
I admire Mande’s willingness to tackle the sacred cows of modern society.
How ironic women proudly wear a T-shirt saying ‘Save the Tata’s’ yet abort over a million of their own children a year.
Hypocrisy indeed Mande.
As do I. Breast Cancer, while a terrible disease, receives a disproportionate share of funding in comparison to how many people actually die from it because it’s celebrity pushed fundraising cause.
I figured it’s just because boobs are valued higher than hearts, kidneys, pancreases, etc.
Well, yeah – which would you rather embrace, a boob or a rectum? “…rectum, damn near killed em…”
For Men
Lung Cancer kills 60 per 100,000
Colon, Prostate and Rectal kills +-20 per 100,000
All the rest under kills 12 per 100,000
For Women
Lung Cancer kills 40 per 100,000
Breast Cancer kills +- 20 per 100,000
All the rest kills 13 per 100,000
Start walking, stop smoking, get a colo-rectal exam, “fondle” your breasts and/or “nads” and stop worrying. http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/content/@research/documents/webcontent/acspc-042151.pdf
By the way, Colo-rectal awareness ribbons are actually blue for some unknown reason.
Hey Colonel……….in observance of “Moon River”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPStwD1C8-c
…maybe we can get start our own “Moon River Pin Club”..?
….maybe get “Blue Moon” brew to sponsor our first Edisto River cruise on floats..?
…..get FITSNEWS to report our escapades…?
Hey Colonel……….in observance of “Moon River”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPStwD1C8-c
…maybe we can get start our own “Moon River Pin Club”..?
….maybe get “Blue Moon” brew to sponsor our first Edisto River cruise on floats..?
…..get FITSNEWS to report our escapades…?
As Crystal Gale once said, “Don’t it make my brown eye blue?”.
Wait, did she say eyes?
What, you *really* wanted the brown ones??? ;-)
Brains too. Breast cancer funding dwarfs Alzheimers research funding.
She’s just hungry.
Screw all you tit haters!
Boobies over everything else!
Mande:
Doesn’t everything cause cancer, eventually? I’ve read soooo many articles describing all of the carcinogens in practically everything. If you type “foods that cause cancer” into a search engine, you can find “credible studies” claiming that practically everything will cause cancer eventually.
In fact, I recently learned that all those vegetables I’ve eaten over the years contains BPA–a carcinogen. It seems like you can never win the “avoid carcinogens” game.
While I’m not refuting your Eli Lilly claim, if my aforementioned statement is accurate, then are there any companies free from guilt?
You’re right to an extent. For instance, aspartame in diet sodas has been studied and found to be a carcinogen, but only at extremely high doses.
In 2005, a laboratory study found more lymphomas and leukemias in rats fed very high doses of aspartame (equivalent to drinking 8 to 2,083 cans of diet soda daily) (1). However, there were some inconsistencies in the findings. For example, the number of cancer cases did not rise with increasing amounts of aspartame as would be expected.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/artificial-sweeteners
Drinking eight cans of soda a day isn’t healthy, but it is possible I suppose. Drinking 2,083 cans per day may be slightly more difficult I’m afraid.
There’s no way to eliminate all carcinogens, but limiting the well known ones as much as reasonably possible is a good goal.
From what I’ve read, we call carry cancer cells. What we consume greatly affects the risk of activating the little buggers. People just need to be responsible and sensible.
How about you shove a Pink sock in your mouth for the month of October?
Awareness campaigns are like assholes everyone has one and most of the reek. Unluckily if you work an certain corporate environments you are forced in to participating almost at the point of a gun.
You have rage against so many things.
Nah. She’s not all that ragey. She just rolls her eyes. Attactively.
Mainly the issues are ones of transparency and hypocrisy – corporations shilling “pink” products don’t disclose the amount of proceeds which is actually donated, and many of those same companies add carcinogenic substances to their products.
If we question how much these captains of industry are actually giving to breast cancer research, then one might come to the conclusion that perhaps the market is not trustworthy to solve the ills of society in every instance. Then it’s only an inevitable decline once they apply other skepticisms to the Invisible Hand (peace be upon Him). Have faith, sister! The market works in mysterious ways!
Besides, if people want to buy shitty products that might kill them under the notion that some of the overly inflated price goes to charity, when in fact very little of it actually does, who are we to stop them? That’s how freedom works. For instance, someone sells someone else a cheaper car that may or may not explode in a crash and everyone wins (results may vary). We shouldn’t expect anyone to step in and say they should spend a few extra dollars to make sure it doesn’t explode and potentially save someone’s life. We have to let corporations decide what a human life is worth (to them) and determine which is cheaper, the fix that saves lives or the legal costs of letting the customers grab their bootstraps seconds before impact.
We all know that the free market will absolutely punish the bad businesses and reward those who do the right thing, because that’s how reality always works. Always. Unless there’s even a smidgeon of government around, then it isn’t a true free market and it’s all government’s fault.
America deserves a choice! Build more death traps, and gas guzzling hunks of useless iron!
Without ignorant morons with a death wish, how could we claim to be saving money, and making good choices?
September 30 is officially–
—— NATIONAL MUDPACK DAY
Two observations: The American Cancer Society does not agree with your assertion regarding rBGH http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/recombinant-bovine-growth-hormone; and the donations v. mortality graphic is essentially meaningless in that the donations used are only from the signature fundraising event and aren’t reflective of overall contributions.
***…..meanwhile over in the SMIRKS Inc. conference room….***
CEO SMIRKS: “My Allah, take a look at this article..! This woman really has a crisp noggin..!! She has the gall to write about a pink ribbon but yet still has that red dress on in her AVATAR photo..!?
SMIRKS Inc. V.P. of Estrogen awareness: “The least she could do if she really wanted to garner more web hits and spark some banter would be to don a pink “veil”…!!!”
SMIRKS Janitor: “What this poor woman needs is a closed door session with our SMIRKS Inc. media optics division. Heck, when I sweep through most days to collect the trash ….I find better ideas for garnering web hits than this woman ever dreams of. Its sad..! For a woman to be so right and…….then to be able to write and articulate in such a “fashion”………Joan Rivers would be so disgusted. She tried her whole life to get women to be aware of their fashion and it looks like Mande is taking a whiff…”
CEO SMIRKS Inc.: ” Heck, maybe that could be our next realm of “vision” here at SMIRKS Inc. Mande WIlkes would really make a great addition to our team. Heck, Mr. “J”, I’ll promote you to head this new division and we can get live documentary going of how you personally took the Mande Wilkes case head on and helped her conquer her vision short “sited-ness”..!!
SMIRK Janitor: “Can I still collect the trash each day around here………you would be amazed at how many great ideas I find..!”
SMIRKS Inc. V.P. of Estrogen Awareness: ” I don’t see why not…..I know I had that job before you did and I do miss a lot of those great ideas in the trash…!”
I was unaware of breast cancer… until I saw a pink ribbon. Then I knew it was serious.
I get it….It’s the sinister Big Pharma:
Why is it liberals, and Liberal-tarians have to find Boogey men among businesses, who up-front tell you they are manufacturing a product, trying to convince you why you nee it so they can sell it to you?…There is NO clandestine motive related to imposing the hated capitalism on you. Unlike the Democrat Party and RonPaul, they are very honest about their intentions.
Same with God (as in nature and Global Warming)…you cower from all of the shadows that chase you nutjobs around…wanting to spend trillions to protect us from forces that you could not affect, even if we gave you – and your secular god – gazillions and a magic wand…
Yet you ignore – or call peaceful -murderous be-headers and baby killers, who openly admit they are bent on annihilation of Americans…. You gladly give the aid, that is turned around and used to kill us…
Leave it to you idiots (see FITS, RonPaul, Mande) and we all die by bombs…while the liberal-stupid attack the police; SUVs driven by “evil” businessmen; and brownies served in the school cafeteria.
Join with me, my brothers…. help me raise the evil clown flag over this great nation! Let us erect a new standard over this great nation… and as its shadow lengthens… I’ll show you my dark secrets… I’m not gonna lie… don’t be afraid… I won’t hurt you.. .so help me Jesus!
I can promise you… a better life.. .forever.. and I promise, I will treat you well… so help me Jesus!
put on the gilded black ribbon of individuality… pull on the jackboots of the revolution… and join me – hold the head of conformity under the water until the struggles recede, and the ripples join in total, abstract obscurity…
for basic black is back this year!
I know what it is to be a man.. it is our destiny.. we will cross the water.. we will wake up the desert…our power will be complete… and when we are done – all shall kneel before me.. er.. us…my..our God… and flag.
Cliche liberal much?
much too much too much muches, dipshit.
I’m trying to hold back……
—————————
THE CLICHÉ EXPERT TAKES THE STAND
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Q – Mr. Arbuthnot, as an expert in the use of the cliché,
are you prepared to testify here today regarding its application topics of love, sex, matrimony and the like?
A – I am.
(– and so forth)
ALERT!! ALERT!!!
It’s “Rolling Thunder” time on I-85 (roughly from exits 70 – 55) – north & south
Courtsey of that “TEA Party” darling: Sheriff “Chuckie” Wright of Spartanburg County!!!
Come on “fuzz” don’t be left out & get your fare share of the cut….the eagle is shitting!!!!!
Stay away from I-85 in Spartanburg County for the next few days if you can!!!!!
Sheriff “Chuckie” Wright’s cash cow “Rolling Thunder” is in progress as I write this!!!!!
A piece from Wilkes that not only makes sense, but is well outside the comfort zone of most folks- nicely played. In another generation or so, we’ll all wish we had raised as much money for Alzheimer’s research as we have some of the sexier causes…
Ehhh? what’s that you say?
With any luck Mike we will forget that we neglected to do that.
if only rubbing one’s stomach would assuage hunger the way masturbation does sex, we could concentrate on the weightier issues of life.
Lost all respect for you. My twin sister died of breast cancer on August 31 2013. I hope I run into on the street wearing my pink tshirt. If you feel the need to slap this bitch-you should know this bitch slaps back.
What has been written has nothing to do with disrespecting anybody. It’s a well known fact that all the hoopla used to raise money for cancer research only raises money to fill peoples’ pockets.
The same goes for any of the cancer fundraising events/walks/etc. How much money goes to research and how much into CEOs pockets? Big Pharma does not want a cure for any cancers. Of course, a cure already exists in cannabis. I was watching a bunch of tv celebrities today with their shpeel (?) on the issue and could not help but wonder about all the emphasis placed on celebrating survivors. What’s up with that? Why would I want to be praised and celebrated for having my cancer cured? Sure, I’m happy for them, but they didn’t do anything. Now, the people who should be celebrated are those who cure their cancer with methods other than chemo and radiation, like cannabis and other alternative methods – the ones who go against the mainstream.
Well, my breast cancer was stage III caught on my very first mammogram at age 42, no one in my family has ever had it. I went through the whole treatment thing, now I can barely walk. I can no longer work. Lucky to stay awake for more than four hours at a time, and I live in constant pain, it never ever goes away. This is about as good as it is going to get for me, as far as recovering goes. When I first was diagnosed, I went to a lot of breast cancer charity pages, looking for financial assistance, in a panic about everything but the cancer itself. Surely with their millions, Komen helps out women with money to cover their mortgage, their kids needs, even transportation support because you are going every day for radiation for six weeks towards the end of the treatment cycle, right? I had health and long-term care insurance but what happens when you suddenly aren’t getting paychecks, what if you weren’t financially positioned to deal with it as I was? There is no breast cancer charity that I know of that actually gives money away, they only ask for it, and you do not qualify for disability unless you are sure to be dead in three months. These bullshit artists give absolutely nothing to the people that actually have breast cancer, all the single moms who are the only income in the house, I guess they lose everything, their house, car, job, all of it. Imagine the difference five thousand dollars could make in their lives–there is nothing available for them! I’m lucky, I have a great husband and he provides me with a great standard of living, because three women I met in various waiting rooms had their husbands promptly pack up and leave when they got diagnosed. That is actually common, people just bail, the cowards. Fortunately, my husband is an English Jew, so Mande I know you get what I am saying with regards to that, the Jewish side of my family rallied but everyone else, even 25 year old friendships, disappeared, so I consider myself very lucky. So please, before you give a dime to these pink ribbon people, find someone who actually is suffering agony right now, today, and give directly to them. Having the financial weight lifted a bit can make all the difference, stress effects outcomes, so you are actually helping them healthwise too. The parking lots of any treatment center are packed, so many people, find one with a shitty car with grandma and four kids waiting four hours in the hot parking lot while their loved one is in chemo infusion, and just hand them a money order. Not touchy feely, prefer to remain anonymous? Walmart gift cards, gas cards, 500 bucks at Target buys a lot of essentials, buy their kids gifts for birthdays and holidays, wrap them, and that way Mom won’t go nuts scraping money together and then trying to get to a store, tough when you can’t walk. Buy them a year of monthly housecleaning service, leave a box of new bedding and some pretty things on their doorstep, then thank G-d on your knees that you were able to help someone in pain and misery. There are a zillion ways to help. Because Komen isn’t going to do a damn thing for them.