{"id":7843,"date":"2016-10-20T17:06:02","date_gmt":"2016-10-20T17:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/?p=7843"},"modified":"2016-10-20T17:06:02","modified_gmt":"2016-10-20T17:06:02","slug":"breast-cancer-isnt-pink-and-flirty-its-life-threatening","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/2016\/10\/20\/breast-cancer-isnt-pink-and-flirty-its-life-threatening\/","title":{"rendered":"Breast cancer isn\u2019t pink and flirty: It\u2019s life threatening"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Graphic: Deirdra Harris-Glover<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Deirdra Harris Glover
\n<\/strong>Managing Editor<\/em><\/p>\n

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and nearly every fountain in town is dyed pink for the occasion. It\u2019s a lovely gesture, but other \u201cpink-out\u201d stunts are missing the mark.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t Just Stare, Save a Pair!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBig and Small: We Save Them All\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSave Second Base\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSave the Ta-Tas\u201d<\/p>\n

Forgive the provocative tone, but there are companies profiting off these highly-sexualized takes on \u201cawareness.\u201d Breast cancer isn\u2019t pink and flirty. It is life-threatening.<\/p>\n

A representative from the American Cancer Society, one of the organizations that founded Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 1985, told The Huffington Post that they oppose the commercialization of breast cancer, and are aware of the mixed feelings pink ribbons can evoke:<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Pinkwashing\u2019 is the commercialization of breast cancer, which the American Cancer Society stands against. We work to end breast cancer as demonstrated by our Making Strides walk \u2014 a key initiative to help further our life-saving progress. The American Cancer Society understands that people view pink ribbons differently. For millions, it means something very special like the memory of a loved one, support for someone facing the disease or hope for the next generation. For others, ribbons don\u2019t hold that kind of special meaning. We respect both sides of that discussion. It\u2019s breast cancer that is the problem, and the Society is committed to help save more lives from this disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

We live in a society where Facebook deletes photos of mastectomy scars due to their obscenity, but splays risqu\u00e9 advertising campaigns with impunity. Why are we so comfortable with cleavage, but shrink away from a warrior\u2019s battle wounds?<\/p>\n

A breast cancer diagnosis can leave a patient feeling overwhelmed, betrayed by his or her body, and consumed by loss of self-esteem. Treatment often involves hair loss and other outward signs of illness. Surgery can leave them lonely and insecure, unmoored by the loss of their breasts.<\/p>\n

Hypersexual breast cancer awareness campaigns send society\u2014and patients\u2014competing messages about survivors\u2019 value in society. It puts the preservation of women\u2019s breasts above their very lives.<\/p>\n

When your loved ones are diagnosed with cancer, I doubt your first thoughts spring to preserving their peerless d\u00e9colletage. I hope your thoughts fly to their support systems, their doctors, and all the large and small things that play a part in lifesaving cancer treatment.<\/p>\n

One in three African-Americans will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, according to the American Cancer Society\u2019s \u201cFacts and Figures for African-Americans 2013-2014.\u201d One in five will die of it. Breast cancer is on the rise, supplanting lung cancer as the most prevalent cancer discovered among African American women.<\/p>\n

I charge you to directly impact the lives of people you know who are fighting cancer. Mow a lawn or bake a casserole. Sit with someone through their treatment. Send a card to your aunt. Truly listen to someone talk about their disease without offering platitudes: acknowledge how hard it is, and offer your support.<\/p>\n

Most importantly, try and move away from the idea that the breast is the most important part of \u201cbreast cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Deirdra Harris Glover Managing Editor October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and nearly every fountain in town is dyed pink for the occasion. It\u2019s a lovely gesture, but other \u201cpink-out\u201d stunts are missing the mark. \u201cDon\u2019t Just Stare, Save a Pair!\u201d \u201cBig and Small: We Save Them All\u201d \u201cSave Second Base\u201d \u201cSave the Ta-Tas\u201d Forgive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-7843","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-opinion"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7843"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7843\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}