the source - spring 2010

The Source Issue 109, Spring 2010

The Source—Spring 2010 | 04.05.2010 © 2010, Breast Cancer Action ISSN #1993-2408, published quarterly by BCA. Articles on detection and treatment do not constitute endorsements or medical advice but are intended solely to inform. Requested annual donation is $50, but no one is refused for lack of funds. “Breast Cancer Action”, "Think Before You Pink" and the BCA logo are the registered trademarks of Breast Cancer Action. All rights reserved. Not to be used without express written permission.

Issue #109 Spring 2010

Health Care Reform: Immediate Good News for Some Cancer Patients By Barbara A. Brenner, BCA Executive Director

All the news media in the last few weeks have focused on the fact that the United States has finally started down the road to a health care system where everyone has access to the care they need. At BCA, we’re thrilled, but we’re also keeping a watchful eye on the situation.

While it’s not easy to grasp all that the new health care reform legislation will ultimately mean for cancer patients, we know the benefits that will go into effect quickly will have a huge impact on many lives. Under the law, a high risk insurance pool will be created this year to guarantee affordable health coverage for people with medical problems. Within six months, the law ends annual or lifetime caps on coverage of insurance policies. Cancer therapies are so expensive that people quickly reach those caps, so this is a very important step in assuring that people can get the care they need if they have insurance. At the same time as the end to caps on coverage, the law prohibits insurance companies from canceling insured people who get sick, unless fraud is involved. Also in 2010, the law will provide subsidies for small businesses and nonprofits to encourage them to provide health insurance for their employees. And for Medicare patients, the famous doughnut hole that results in seniors paying all their drug costs for a period of time will begin to close with a rebate payment. The doughnut hole will not completely close until 2020.



While it will take longer, the prohibition on insurance companies refusing to cover people with preexisting medical conditions, which takes effect in 2014, will also be of great benefit to cancer patients. So, while the early benefits are promising, they’re mostly of use to people who already have insurance. And whether the costs of these policies will rise as the companies are forced to cover more sick people for longer is still an open question. How all this will play out over time will be interesting to watch, but we know this is a step in the right direction, and we anticipate that more will be done as the realities unfold. At least, we hope that’s true. Of course, we would have been far happier with a public option, limits on what drug companies can charge, and lots of other things. But the new legislation is a good — and, in fact, a historic — start.



From the Executive Director: Where the Money Comes From—It Matters By Barbara A. Brenner The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a decision giving corporations free reign to try to buy American elections. People can disagree—and will—about the role of money in politics. But in the politics of health, I believe that the adverse influence of corporate money has been revealed in too many ways to ignore. Whether it’s pharmaceutical companies paying doctors to promote their drugs, or health insurance companies developing patient groups to promote how wonderful their services are, if you don’t follow the money in health, you won’t be able to tell what’s going on. That’s one of the reasons BCA adopted in 1998 a policy on corporate contributions that makes very clear what kind of corporate funding we will—and won’t—accept. We adopted this policy not because corporate money is bad, but because we want people to understand that corporate interests have absolutely no bearing on any of our positions. We also know that how we are funded has an impact on our coalition efforts, since there are corporations that have undermined the health of poor communities for many years by their manufacturing or marketing strategies. While you may not agree with BCA’s positions, you will never have to wonder whether we believe what we are saying. We can and do come to our own conclusions, because no corporation that conflicts with our principles is influencing our positions. In many ways BCA’s corporate contributions policy is a great strength—after all, it reflects the organization’s integrity and allows us to fulfill our role as the watchdogs of the breast cancer movement. It is also a great challenge because we have to fund this work without just taking a big check from a pharmaceutical company. Instead, we rely on people like you for most of our funding. After all, if we’re doing a job that the community thinks is important, they will fund it. If community members think we don’t provide a needed service, we shouldn’t exist. This is what we mean when we say that we absolutely couldn’t do it without you—in so many ways.



Screening and Mammography: The Real Story Part 1: A Patient’s Perspective By Cathy Bueti, Author, Speaker, Cancer Survivor I was 31 years old when I was diagnosed. I found the lump myself. The dense breast tissue—common in someone of my young age—prevented the mammogram from clearly revealing a tumor. An excisional biopsy in my case revealed Stage II breast cancer. Mammography is not a good screening tool for most young women because we often have denser breast tissue. A radiologist told me that the results of my annual mammograms are nearly impossible to read for that reason which leads me to question why I am having them done. There is also the concern among health professionals about the effects of radiation exposure in young breast tissue from these medical tests. This concerns me as well. In addition, mammography can find cancers that may never be life threatening if left untreated, yet once identified by a mammography, these cancers will be aggressively treated. This is a facet of cancer that I think has not been talked about nearly enough. The months since the U.S. Prevention Services Task Force (USPSTF) initially announced new recommendations for mammography screening have been filled with many emotionally driven debates from both the medical profession and people living with breast cancer. I think that there needs to be fewer debates driven by anger and more action to reduce mortality rates in young adults. There needs to be a greater focus on finding more effective screening tools for the young population. I believe that using an ineffective tool for lack of something better gives a false sense of security to the many women fearful of getting this disease. As a young breast cancer survivor, I have no doubt that I am in the minority when I say that I supported the new guidelines from the get-go. Part 2: A BCA Commentary By Angela Wall, BCA Communications Manager The USPSTF guidelines were initially drawn up under the Bush administration in 2002, with an intended audience of clinicians rather than patients and the general public. The revised 2009 guidelines were released to the public, however, during a major U.S. economic crisis and amid efforts by the Obama administration to introduce national health care reform legislation. This release was badly timed and badly managed, resulting in a mangling of the issues. Waves of fear swept across the nation, having nothing much to do with the science-based evidence that produced the USPSTF guidelines, but having



something very real to do with the state of women’s health care in the United States. And as often happens in such a media maelstrom, the voices of those who actually had something to say that was worth hearing were drowned out by the mainstream. The greatest fissure these guidelines reveal is the social inequities that exist in our country: the divide between the health care haves and have-nots. Government-funded annual mammogram and screening programs offer many women who live without health insurance access to health care on a regular basis. Federally and state funded annual screenings mean an annual trip to a health facility of some kind, which in turn provides access to medical practitioners. During these annual visits, other health concerns can be addressed. A discussion of the scaling back of mammograms amid the budget crisis and health care reform understandably left many in the African American community, for example--where breast cancer occurs at younger ages, and often more aggressively--feeling abandoned and concerned that once again systemic racism was valuing cost savings over the health needs of African Americans. Amid the distress over cutbacks and death sentences, critical discussions about the ability of mammograms to actually prolong women’s lives in these communities were, for the most part, ignored. When it comes to discussing health issues, emotions run high. After all, it’s people’s lives we’re talking about. However, during the “mammography debates,” among the press and many breast cancer advocacy groups, these emotions drove the debate. We can’t let that happen again. When we are presented with science-based evidence, we have a responsibility to examine the recommendations carefully. Existing screening methods are inadequate. We need screening technologies that do more good than harm; we need technologies that can reduce mortality rates. We need to address health inequities so that women of color and women of limited economic means have the health care they need to live longer lives. We need screening techniques that effectively detect the more aggressive types of breast cancer that increasingly are present among African American women. We need to find more effective screening tools, because what we have is simply not good enough. Current mammography screening technology is not a panacea for breast cancer. And it’s certainly not a stand-in for adequate health coverage. The recent outcry against the USPSTF guidelines reveals that many incorrectly believe that it is.



BCA Turns 20 By Angela Wall Notice anything new about our logo? You bet! The year 2010 marks Breast Cancer Action’s 20th anniversary. BCA began in 1990 as a small band of angry women. Led by founder Elenore Pred, they met in Linda Reyes’ living room. “We are meeting to organize Breast Cancer Action,” the flyer announced. “Our goals are education and political action to prevent a further rise in breast cancer.” They were radicalized by their situation and, as far as we can tell, had a good time together, causing trouble for those who got in their way. That small band of unsatisfied women brought together a movement that transformed conversations about breast cancer forever. Some of their names are well known in the breast cancer world: Susan Claymon, Linda Reyes and Belle Shayer the only surviving founder of this organization. But it is the many others whose names are less well known that make BCA’s work possible. Throughout this anniversary year, we are celebrating everyone, past and present, who has advanced our efforts and the many victories we have won together. By acknowledging and honoring the many hearts, hands, and minds that have brought us to where we are today, we find the strength and energy to continue BCA’s work as long as necessary. This year we celebrate our future together and the hundreds of thousands of people who got us to where we are today. We will never give up. We will end this epidemic. Join us in celebrating 20 years of challenging assumptions and inspiring change by making a donation of $50 today.



BCA work on health inequities: an important priority By Alicia Harris, BCA Program Associate BCA has three priority areas that guide our work: Putting Patients First includes our efforts to ensure that the FDA drug and device approval process advances the needs of people over those of the pharmaceutical industry. Creating Healthy Environments, including our well-known Think Before You Pink campaign, is our work to reduce the involuntary environmental exposures that contribute to the breast cancer epidemic. Eliminating Social Inequities is our effort to create awareness of the social injustices, rather than genetics or personal decisions, which lead to inequities in breast cancer incidence and outcomes. While the extent of BCA’s treatment and environmental work is known to most of our members and evident in our programs and communications, the eliminating social inequities priority is not as well known despite some efforts in this area in the past. In particular, our former Spanish language newsletter Saber Es Poder, spoke to the particular issues in breast cancer affecting Latina communities. In addition, BCA staff conducted outreach and coalition work related to breast cancer outcomes in low-income communities of color. However, economic turmoil, budget constraints and past staff turnover have significantly slowed the progress of this work and the connections we need to maintain it. Eliminating social inequities is an important BCA priority, and must become a part of all that we do. Maintaining this priority involves paying close attention to whose point of view, whose experiences, are at the center of the decisions we make regarding our work? We must pay attention to the language we use to develop these programs. We need to develop the right contacts to ensure these programs are effectively implemented. We need to build strategies and programs that will remain firmly in place despite fluctuations in staff and budget. Last year, a BCA graduate intern used staff discourse and her own experience as a newcomer to the organization to develop a presentation on supports in place for inequities work--and the impediments that have slowed it. The needs discussed in her presentation included: campaigns that specifically articulate how people are differently affected by the breast cancer epidemic in terms of race and class, programming and strategy that prioritizes the needs of the most impacted communities, and continued work in coalition with other organizations. Before any efforts to fulfill these needs can be implemented, however, the organization must thoroughly examine its current position. Board and staff



began working with activist anti-oppression consultants, Training for Change, which has helped us think about how we relate to each other and who has access to our work. Their assistance will hopefully make us more effective in our strategies and get us one step closer to building important alliances so that we can truly address the social inequities that affect breast cancer incidences and outcomes. As we continue having the conversations necessary to do this work effectively, we’ll need the perspectives of the people who know us (members and partner organizations) and crucially, those who don’t know us yet. Please let us know your thoughts on how we can build on BCA’s 20 years of work. Help us to continue our work as an effective, responsive organization so that together we can end the breast cancer epidemic.



Let’s Talk About Health Inequities By Sierra Harris, BCA Intern

In early January, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Minority Health publicly unveiled their draft of the National Plan for Action, a report that outlines 20 strategies to impact the elimination of health disparities in the United States. In a uniquely transparent and collaborative effort by the HHS, the draft was

submitted to the public seeking feedback from individuals and nonprofit health organizations before the plan was finalized. At the time of the report’s release, I was on staff at BCA and had the opportunity to digest this dense yet encouraging report. Here’s a summary of the ins and outs of this precedent-setting government effort. The report outlines the problem of the staggering health inequities in the United States. In a disturbing display of graphs and data, the first chapter is organized by ailment or disease and then broken down by rates per population. Race, socioeconomic status, age, and gender are displayed as health determinants, and the statistics show that non-white minorities, particularly those of a lower socioeconomic status, are at greater risk of harm and death across the board. The data shows that health disparities are unequivocally a major health care burden in the United States. Much of the report outlines strategies, implementation, and evaluation processes. I was somewhat cynical about whether this report would put those most affected by health inequities, such as people of color and women, at the center of any strategy. Surprisingly, despite my cynicism, I became convinced and hopeful by several overarching emerging themes. The report’s strategy component has several encouraging and grassroots-minded goals such as building leadership among impacted communities, funding community-based participatory research, extending education on health disparities as part of public school curriculum, promoting access to care in all neighborhoods, promoting and requiring cultural competency in health care, and adopting a continual evaluation process to improve programs with evidence-based research. The implementation component was similarly encouraging and promising collaboration between community members and state representatives, as well



as a strong and transparent communication between NGOs, federal agencies, and health providers. Putting competition and self-interests aside, this report encourages a comprehensive and cooperative initiative by all in order to decrease health inequities. The final draft of this report will be released later this year. The extent to which suggestions by health advocates and community members are incorporated still remains to be seen. We should closely monitor the implementation and health impacts of this report and continue to ask critical questions. Keeping that in mind, the decisive approach of this administration to tackling health inequities is certainly a start in the right direction. BCA is currently developing its own program and voice addressing breast cancer inequities, and this work is more pressing and pertinent than ever. I believe the National Plan for Action has fallen in line with what many health advocates have said for years, as it explicitly unveils generations of health injustices in poor communities of color. If this report achieves anything, health organizations will no longer be able to ignore the impact of race and class on health. Action is the plea of this report, and now is the time for all organizations, on all levels, to focus on health inequities in a meaningful and urgent way. For those interested in reading the draft of the National Plan for Action, you can find it at: http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/npa/templates/browse.aspx?lvl=1&lvlID=31.



DONATIONS IN HONOR BCA gratefully acknowledges donations made in honor of the following individuals between November 23, 2009 and March 2, 2010. All My Patients from Lora Hebert All of Us Fighting This Disease from Karyn Yandow Judy Allen from Martha Fay Africa Abigail Arons from Elissa and Daniel Arons Auntie Bab Attard from Barbara J. Attard Pauline Attard from Theresa Attard Molly Banks from Delia McGrath Bay Area Young Survivors from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein BCA Staff from Amy L. Harris BCA's 20th Anniversary from Alison and Phil Braverman BCA's Great Work from Andrea J. Werlin Deborah Behrakis from Carole L. Mendelsohn Christine Bement from Lesley Bement Janice Bezou from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Joyce Bichler from Marcia and Alan Kimbarow Kay Blair from Donna Brogan

Ruth Borenstein from Muriel and Sheldon Strauss from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Eve Borenstein from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Katie and Chris Bouton from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Alison Braverman from Katie Braverman from Vicki Green and Bob Curry Breast Cancer Action from Anonymous Breast Cancer Research from Eva and Daniel Langton Breast Friends for Life from Florie and Joseph Adiutori Barbara Brenner from Anonymous from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein from Karen Bowen and Beth Gerstein from Beth A. Chapman from Emily Doskow from Dorothy Ehrlich from Jill and Richard Granick from Mary Gregory from Carl and Gay Grunfeld from Jill C. Israel from Leonie and Glen Janken from M. Anne Jennings from Anne L. Josephson and Dolph J. Vanderpol from Sarah Markel and Lloyd Altman from Deborah J. Marx from Margo Perin from Noreen Vera Purcell from Patricia Purcell from Sandra Sohcot from Harriet and Sheldon Wolpoff



DONATIONS IN HONOR November 23, 2009-March 2, 2010 Barbara Brenner and Suzanne Lampert from Charlotte E. Burchard and Bahman Sheikh-Ol-Eslami from Irma D. Herrera and Mark D. Levine Kim Butler from Anonymous Diane Caccavale from Sarah and Mark Rabin Spira Diane Carr from Mary Anne McGuire-Hickey Bruce Chatfield from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Carl Chatfield and Susan Anderson from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Demie Chicos from Sandra Morris Rene Ciria Cruz from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Nancy Chu from Jianne Gimian Elaine Coelho from Joyce Bichler and Michael Kimbarow Gail Cohen from Ayelet Waldman and Michael Chabon Hannah Klein Connolly from Brian Huff Pam Copenhauer from Anonymous Elaine Costello from Tabacco Schmidt Charity

Bonnie Crandle from Maer Ben-Yisrael Philip Crawford from Nancy Achorn Mary Cunningham from Rebecca Krebs Emily and Damon Daniels from Richard Evans Starlyn De Lucca from Denise Cook Martini Adele Dener from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Alexis Derderian from Rachel Panitch Betty Dorfman from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Ginny Dorris from Ayelet Waldman and Michael Chabon Elaine Elinson from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein May Elinson from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Everyone at BCA from Sarah R. Moore and David Begler Mary Fellows from Judy K. Cohen Carolyn Finis Perez from June R. Finis Sonia Flores from Varya Simpson Elizabeth Foy from Mark Claycomb Norma Freeberg from Lindsay Freeberg



DONATIONS IN HONOR continued November 23, 2009-March 2, 2010 Lori Leigh Gieleghem from Karen Merritt Elka Gilmore from David Bunnell Lilo K. Goetzel from Vivian Holley Gayle Goldman from Jessica and Benjamin Rosenberg Carol Goss from Rochelle and William A. Lester Caren Gould from Robert Gould and Patrice Sutton Nancy Granat from Richard Granat Jessea Greenman from Alfreda Wright Chris Griffith from Anonymous Marilyn Gross from Richard Gross Chris Grumm from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Sandra Hagen from Sandra Hagen and Nancy Goldstucker Mary Harms from Dona and Joseph Santo My Mother, Hattie from Francine S. Derman Patricia Hawthorne from Janet and Herbert Hodos

Catherine Hedges from Sandra Hagen and Nancy Goldstucker Katanya Henry from Barbara J. Attard Judy Henty from Lisa Henty Joan and John Hodge from Daniel Schwartz Sue Holbrook from Susan Gunderson Marvin Jones' 85th Birthday from Beverly D. Robbins Gail Kaufman from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein Lisa Kautz from Marguerite Scott Heidi Keyes from Dawn Yun Andy and Marcia Kislik from Marcia Patrice Ganeles-Kislik Kathy Klos from Anonymous Dorothy Koenig from Lenore Dale Ralston Nadine Kramer from Merila Kramer Shirley Krug from Anonymous Bill Kubisiak from Amanda Santmyer Eunice Laird from Darlene R. Peck JoAnn Loulan from Bonnie and Andrew Sterngold



DONATIONS IN HONOR continued November 23, 2009-March 2, 2010 JoAnn Madigan from Anonymous Mike and Jean Madigan from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Anne Markey Mahbubani from Richard Markey Polly Marshall from Barbara and James Kautz Renetia Martin from Jeffrey Moulton Benevedes Linda Matticks from Susan Nash and Tom Paulek Sherry McHenry from Barbara Thomason and Anna Crawford Me, Breast Cancer Survivor Twice from Dorothy Washington Meg's Rapid Recovery from Roberta Lipsman and Eric Wright Jenny Mendoza from Maren Klawiter Catherine Miller from Ellen S. Carmody Diane Miller from Kellea Miller Sarah Mills from Anonymous My Mom from Anonymous Rachel Morello-Frosch from Karen Strauss and Ruth Borenstein

Lori Morton from Robert D. Morton Sarah Morkert Munoz from Kathleen Morkert My Cancer Support Group from Margo L. Arcanin My Friend from Karen Winston My Own Survival of Ten Years from Martha M. Flint Annette Nelson-Wright from Lindsey Collins Resa Niksch from Anonymous Niles Breast Cancer Support Group from Cathy and John Bair Mary O'Connell from Edna DeCesare Betsy Orris from Anonymous My Mother, Fay Parrish from Anonymous Pearl from Robert Weiss Carol Pepper from Anonymous Lesley Pierce and Berry Nemiroff from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Cheri Pies' 60th Birthday from Nancy Wiltsek Judy Rasmussen from Joan H. Patten Linda Riner from Anonymous



DONATIONS IN HONOR continued November 23, 2009-March 2, 2010 Judith Rohrer from Donna Brogan Mori Rubin from Karen Stevenson and Bill McClave Deborah Schmall from Jamin Hawks Rendy Schwartz from Sandra Hagen and Nancy Goldstucker Sandra Seden from Anonymous Monica Smith from Jane Ediger Dorian Solot from Suzanne Miller and Walter Vom Saal Barbara Spielman from Merry and Stephen Astor Michelle Stafford from Dawn O'Connor Linda Stamm from Kim Bean Joann Steck-Bayat from Marsha Williamson Andrew Stephenson and Family from Ellen S. Carmody Daniel Stephenson and Family from Ellen S. Carmody Michael Stephenson and Family from Ellen S. Carmody Tim Stephenson and Family from Ellen S. Carmody

James Stewart from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Kyra Subbotin from Laura Enriquez Boris Subbotin from Kyra Subbotin and Henry Siegel Marge Swissler from Mary Ann Swissler The Schwerin-Daro Family from Lee Sider The Stringhams from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Heidi Thompson and Tom Courtney from Jo Ann Madigan and David Chatfield Those Living With Cancer from Joan and Charles Demitz Those Living with MBC from Ellen Moskowitz Martha Threewit from Fran Threewit Adrienne Torf from Jennifer Pressman Debra Travis from Kellea Miller Rebecca Grimes Tripathy from Debasish Tripathy Marilyn Weinberg from Joan and Herschel Solomon Tracy Weitz from Susan Berke Fogel Antonia Winter from Terry Winter



DONATIONS IN HONOR continued November 23, 2009-March 2, 2010 Women in the USA from Venkateshwar Bommakanti and Dr. Sailata R. Bommakanti Joanna Yeaton from Patricia Chu Beverly Ziegler from Julia E. Tower

Susannah Zisk from Diana Gomberg Dr. Marilyn Zivian from Anonymous from Fran and Bud Johns from Susan Shalit from Frances Singer Nancy Zweifel from Sandra Hagen and Nancy Goldstucker

DONATIONS IN MEMORY BCA gratefully acknowledges donations made in memory of the following individuals between November 23, 2009 and March 2, 2010. Susannah Abrams from Lori Berlin Katie Allen from Stuart Kandell from Margaret Rossoff Joyce Ambrosini from Margaret Geneva Langston Meg Ambry from NY State Breast Cancer Network Rita Arditti from Anonymous from Pat Aron from Rachel and Bernard Bortnick from Julia Brody from Gilda Bruckman from Elaine S. Costello and Warren L. Dougherty from Liane R. Curtis from Estelle Disch from Cynthia H. Enloe from Cathy and Richard Freedberg from Ellen Leopold and Lynne Walker from Dee Mosbacher and Nanette Gartrell from Ellen Moskowitz from Amy Pett and Ellen Tibby from Marjorie E. Posner from Doris Reisig

Rita Arditti from Louise Rice from Barbara Rubin from Joni Seager from Micah Sieber from Barbara Siegel Alice Arndt from Anonymous Mrs. W.C. Atwater from Doris Bouwensch Naomi Aubuchon from Elizabeth Kochin Bill Bailey from Barbara Slone Judi Bari from Anonymous Betty Bassett from Elizabeth and Ralph Long Bernice from Daniel Schwartz Elizabeth Boylston from Robin Waters Pat Stocking Brown from Anonymous



DONATIONS IN MEMORY continued November 23, 2009 - March 2, 2010 Dorothy Bruggeman from Linda Louise McMahan Selma Butter from Marsie Scharlatt Carol Cabell from Noemi Levine Toni Carson from Anonymous Ellen Clark from Anonymous Susan Claymon from Julie Gordon and Richard Eisner Claudia Cramer from Sylvia and Peter Dworkin Ann Dashe from Julia Dashe Jane Davidson from Sue Davis Jean S. Davis from Nancy Davis and Donna Hitchens Eleonor Deom from Nina Ginsberg Smith Elizabeth Dishler from Sarah and Patrick Croushler Donna Mae Dowell from Patricia Blair Pierce Donna Drabble from Laurie Drabble Linda Dyer from Anonymous Shelly Eisner from Julie Gordon and Richard Eisner

May Gomberg Elinson from Elaine Elinson from Robin Blackstone and Judith Helder from Eileen Goldman and Robert Gabriner from Ellen and Nelson Grumer from Gloria and Morris Parloff from Alice H. and Albert Spira from Lucy Stamilla Karen D. Ennis from Nancy Davis and Donna Hitchens Elizabeth Ervin from Don Bushman Susan Esposito from Christopher Esposito Gloria Feldman from Maye Thompson Barbara Fetterolf from Linda Mullin Ethel Fialkin from Alice Fialkin Rosalind Fridhandler from Ruth Fridhandler Marilyn Galatis from Patricia Campbell Mary Bravo Galindo from Louise Galindo and Jeffrey Gardiner Rose Giannini from Denise Leto Deena Jane Glass from Carla Anders from Beverly A. Burch from Patricia Chu from Prudence Glass from Ilene and Phineas Hyams from Mary M. Isham from Joanne and Mitchell Lyons from Maxine and Len Lyons from Linda O'Brien from Marty Sochet from Elinor Waxman and Joanne Yeaton



DONATIONS IN MEMORY continued November 23, 2009 - March 2, 2010 Mimi Gray from Victoria Gray Connie Harms from Daisy Fernando from Dona and Joseph Santo Janis Harrey from Anna Saenz Elizabeth M. Heath from Sarah Walker Pat Hejtmanek from Evelyn Jo Wilson and Carol Bennett Pleggy Blum Hill from Sara and Hank Williams Jan Holden from Barbara S. and Elizabeth Bryant-Williams Margaret Holder from Rosalie Hewins Karen Hopfinger from Anthony Hopfinger Holly Horton from Lisa Honig and Dale Schroedel from Joan MacQuarrie and Ellen Slack from Nancy Otto Molly Ivins from Anonymous from Barbara Ehrenreich from Evelyn Jo Wilson and Carol Bennett Julie Jones from Tobi Burch Rates June Jordan from Penny Rosenwasser Sherrie Kelley from Rita M. and Ernest L. Tibbles

Judee Harms King from Daisy Fernando from Kathleen and Ralph Harms from Dona and Joseph Santo Esta Kornfield from Millie Fortier Christine Kitchel from James Hirabayashi Lynnly Labovitz from Pamela Miller Ortha Lebroski from Nancy L. Russell Nancy Leventhal from Patricia Campbell Ellen Lew from Anonymous Robert Lopez, Sr. from Ann and Bob Schiff Ellen Rice Lowery from Margaret Lowery Walsh Kay Lyon from Russell G. Worden and Janette R. Lawrence Doreen Mangan from Trudy M. Farrell Sarah Narosny Marks from Kathy Marks Diane Marsh from Gayle Goldman Florence Maynard from Mary-Ellen Maynard Debbie Mayo from Sharon and Eugene Sullivan Suzanne McGuinn from Brian McGuinn



DONATIONS IN MEMORY continued November 23, 2009 - March 2, 2010 Gail Minsky from Janet and Herbert Hodos My Mom from Ronnie Sandler Rebecca Nataloni from Frances and John Nataloni Barbara Neckel from Mary L. Drinnon Tanya Neiman from Dale Kern Barbara Novack from Anonymous Terrence L. O'Brien from JoAnn O'Brien Rose Marie Packard from Judith Coyote Pam from Clifford P. Stage Shirley Pan from Bertie Mo Julia Pearl from Pearl J. Lea Norma Peterson from Cynthia Dorfman Jan Platner from Barbara Dickey and Donna Ryu Judy Popkin from Alison Scott Elenore Pred from Millie Fortier from Dena F. and Ralph Lowenbach from Julia E. Tower

Anne Pride from Anonymous Melissa Quan from Charlotte Jurehn-Lewis My Mother, Reba Gilpin Canzano from Tovia Freedman Jan Rees from Dora C. Weaver Vicky Reeves from Elaine Eigeman and Daniel Schalke Jo Renzi from Susan Thompson French Elisabeth Rieping from Gudrun Kemper Julie Rodbarry from Rosetta and Santiago Vasquez Esther Rome from Judith Norsigian Anne Rosenbaum from Neshama Franklin Brenda Roth from Barbara and James Kautz from Janet Phillips from Marilyn Winch Lina Ruppel from John Ruppel Anne Sachs from Marilyn and Morris Sachs Hellen Schiavo from Marian Schiavo Marilyn B. Shea from Katherine M. and James H. Shea Lucy Sherak from Ken Fischer and Carlyn M. Montes De Oca



DONATIONS IN MEMORY continued November 23, 2009 - March 2, 2010 Gladys Sneed from Regina A. Sneed Susan Stone from Linda G. Marks Margi Stuart from Anonymous Christine Tamblyn from Ruth and James Tamblyn Marie Thompson from Susan Thompson French Kay Tiblier from Barbara Wunsch and The Faison Kids Barbara Sundlof Tingey from Erika Tingey Helen Tonegato from Barbara J. Attard

Helen Van Camp from Janet Bruchmann Sherry Lane Verdoorn from Valerie Clement Monica Weinstein from Andrea L. Lee Helen Wildhaber from Charlene Brischetto Lilie Hannah Wilke from Marsie Scharlatt Jane Wilson from Ruby S. Bernstein Roberta Wilson-Jolley from Marikathryn Hendrix Anna Wise from Lisa and Charles Wise Molly Wood from Karen Pierce



What Does BCA Do With Your Money? 81 cents of every dollar you donate goes directly towards work on our priorities:

• Putting Patients First: Advocating for more effective and less toxic breast cancer treatments by shifting the balance of power in the FDA drug and device approval process away from the pharmaceutical industry and toward the interest of patients.

• Creating Healthy Environments: Decreasing involuntary environmental exposures to toxins that place women at risk for breast cancer. This includes our “Think Before You Pink™” campaign that focuses on calling out “pinkwashers,” and our Milking Cancer campaign to eliminate rBGH from the world dairy market.

• Eliminating Social Inequities: Creating awareness that it’s not just genes but social inequities – political, racial and economic injustices – that lead to disparities in breast cancer incidences and outcomes.

• Carrying the Voices: Providing unbiased information about breast cancer diagnosis, screening, treatment, and prevention to anyone who requests it.

As the only national breast cancer organization that refuses funding from corporations that profit from or contribute to cancer, we are in the unique position to tell the truth about breast cancer. Nearly 70% of our support comes from individuals just like you. Breast Cancer Action’s mission is to carry the voices of those affected by breast cancer to inspire and compel the changes necessary to end the epidemic. We work at both the national and the grassroots levels to reveal the involuntary environmental exposures linked to breast cancer, to create awareness around the root causes in our social and physical environments that leads to inequities in breast cancer outcomes, and to organize communities to take action and demand safer, less toxic breast cancer treatments. Through our programs and campaigns, we influence media coverage of breast cancer issues, and contribute a unique voice to the ongoing public dialogue about breast cancer research. We could not do this work without your support. Please make a contribution today.



Special Thanks

• Andy Rivera for his generous help with the annual report last year. Thank you for all your help in our preliminary efforts to redesign the bcaction.org web site and for leading our requirements gathering session.

• Evan Deerfield of Cobalt Two for his unending patience. For many years, Evan helped produce The Source online and brought us to the digital age. Evan, you did so much for us, and we appreciate all the support, energy, tenacity, and creative talent you have given us over the years.

• Robert Gomez for a keen copyediting eye and an uncompromising sense of clarity.

• Yvonne at YDay Designs for consistently producing a visually stunning newsletter with such grace and aplomb. Thank you, Yvonne, for your creative vision, patience, and consistent good humor over the years.

• Austin Hastings for volunteering time to help us understand Google analytics more effectively.

• Lisa Taylor for volunteering her internship hours and helping us to meet our communication goals.

• Linda Thai for volunteering her time assisting the development department in gift processing.

• Amber Ramies for donating her time and fabulous design skills for the Sixth Annual Billie E. Loulan Memorial Luncheon.

• Sierra Harris for her extraordinary service to BCA as a program intern, including producing a meaningful and impactful presentation on inequities.

• Amy Firman for believing in the importance of our work and for her ongoing willingness to contribute stellar design work. Thank you for our beautiful 20th anniversary logo.

the source - spring 2010

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