Raising money for breast cancer was the main objective for the annual Falcon Square Breast Cancer Awareness Walk, which raised $872 for the Susan G. Komen Foundation on Thursday, March 27.
“We lose about a thousand women a year to breast cancer, and we have about 6000 diagnosed each year,” said Linda Pura, co-founder of the Los Angeles affiliate for the Susan G. Komen Foundation, on the Los Angeles statistics on breast cancer.
Breast cancer is one of the top killers of women in the country. The American Cancer Society estimates that a total of 235,030 new breast cancer cases will happen this year nation wide.
There were 78 participants this year, some of who have had some of their family members die from breast cancer.
According to Professor Ni Bueno, one of the walk’s organizers, proceeds from the walk will go to the Los Angeles County Branch of the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
Bueno has participated in the walk all 14 years and was present at the walk to help make sure it ran smoothly.
“(Any amount donated) would help the women who really need it, who really need to have assistance with mammograms,” she said.
The Child Development Center also participated in the event and had an obstacle course for the children in the program. Bueno says the walk always includes the children from the community.
“They actually raise money for us as well,” Bueno said.”They had a bake sale twice this week and they are going to donate the money from there to the Susan G. Komen Foundation also.”
The Susan G. Komen Foundation has been around since 1982 and has invested more than $1 billion in funding for the breast cancer movement.
Linda Pura was present during the walk and says that the Los Angeles branch has raised millions of dollars to fund local breast cancer research and service providers in the area.
“After so many of my friends were afflicted with breast cancer, I just thought that ‘enough is enough’ and I wanted to do something. I’m an RN (registered nurse) and have been in the field of breast and cervical cancer and I wanted to make an impact in the community of Los Angeles,” she said.
According to the American Cancer Society, the mortality rate for breast cancer has gone down due to advances in early screenings and treatment for cancer. The chances of a woman to get breast cancer increases as she gets older, but women under 40-years-old are still at risk.
Pura, like Bueno, has taken part in the walk all 14 years and says the walks have raised over $14,000 in funds.
Pura says that even though the biggest national killer of women is cardiac disease, in Los Angeles, the biggest killer of women is breast cancer.
Pura hopes that women will learn all they can about breast cancer and how they can decrease the risk.
“We lose about 1000 women a year to breast cancer and we have about 6000 diagnosed each year.”
Nestor Hernandez, a business major, was present for the event after learning about it the day before from an instructor, “I just wanted to show the support since I lost one of my aunties from it.”
Michael Melindo, a nursing major, took part in the walk and represented the Chicanos/Latinos for Community Medicine Club.
He says that the event has changed the way he sees breast cancer.
“Something interesting that Ni Bueno mentioned was that not only women have to be aware of breast cancer, but also men are afflicted,” Melindo said.
For more information about breast cancer visit the American Cancer Society website and the Susan G. Komen Foundation website.
Slideshow of the Breast Cancer Awareness Walk can be found here.
