How NBCC will Change the Conversation about Breast Cancer

By Caitlin Dalik, DBCC Public Affairs Coordinator

If you’ve been following the news about breast cancer in the media, you probably think that we’ve made some major progress in fighting the disease.  However, you may be surprised to find out that the mortality rate from breast cancer has only decreased 5% since 1975.  Shocked?  So was I.

Courtesy of NBCC.

To work toward changing this statistic, the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) has set a deadline to end breast cancer by January 1, 2020.  Skeptical?  Keep reading.

At NBCC’s Annual Advocacy Training Conference, the sentiments that breast cancer survivors and advocates shared were similar: that they’re tired of pink and the word hope.  Many fear that the sale of pink products is just marketing breast cancer and not getting us any closer to a cure.  That’s why NBCC wants to change the conversation from “pink and hope” to Breast Cancer Deadline 2020 (Click here for information from NBCC about the Deadline).  The pink products have definitely served their purpose—providing awareness of the disease and making “cancer” a word that no longer is whispered—but like NBCC President Fran Visco said, “We want to put ourselves out of business.”  We all want to see an end to breast cancer and it’s definitely possible.  As Fran Visco said to an audience of over 800 women and men at the conference, we cured polio in 7 years and “we didn’t get to the moon on hope.”  She’s got a point.

NBCC isn’t just setting a deadline for attention; they have a detailed strategic plan to achieve their goal (Click here to read the executive summary).  The conference started to change the conversation about breast cancer by bringing in professionals of various fields (from physicists to journalists) to talk about how they think we can change the status quo.  The ideas ranged from creating a preventative vaccine to finding a way to stop metastasis to looking more closely at environmental factors.  However, NBCC doesn’t just want to change the conversation in the science community but also in the media, on Capitol Hill, in local communities, and more.  And that’s where everyone can come in and help put an end to breast cancer.  So if you’re asking, “How can I help NBCC end breast cancer by January 1, 2020?”—here is a list to give you some ideas.

• Be an educated advocate.  Having information at hand to share with others is your best tool to implement change.  There are lots of resources on NBCC’s website that can help you become informed about Breast Cancer Deadline 2020. You can start by clicking here.
• Visit or call your senators and representatives and encourage them to support NBCC’s legislative efforts.  For a list of the legislative priorities, click here.
• Spread the word about Breast Cancer Deadline 2020 with friends, family, co-workers and your doctors.  Let them know that NBCC is working to end breast cancer and give them some information about how they will do it.  Let them know how NBCC differs from other breast cancer organizations and how they are the only one that has set a deadline to end breast cancer (Click here for information from NBCC on how to change the conversation including scenarios).
• Spread the message to you social network!  You can write a blog, post links on Facebook or tweet about the deadline (You can also stay up-to-date on what NBCC is doing by "liking" their Facebook and following them on Twitter)  You can also contact your legislators this way by tweeting at them or posting on their Facebook wall.

We all need to be prepared and educated to make this deadline a reality.  By being educated advocates, we can help NBCC change the conversation and end breast cancer.  I encourage you to take action today.

Watch this video from NBCC about Breast Cancer Deadline 2020.

More resources:

• The NBCC Baseline Report that gives an overview of the state of breast cancer right now.
• How to talk to friends and family about breast cancer? from NBCC
• Watch other videos on NBCC's YouTube Channel