The New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation
Home » Good Cause » The New Zealand Breast Cancer FoundationTake action against breast cancer this October
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month globally. The New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation (NZBCF) is asking us to take action against the disease that is the number one cancer killer of New Zealand women.
Breast cancer will affect one in nine New Zealand women in their lifetime, and more than 2,500 are diagnosed with the disease every year. More than 600 women lose their lives to breast cancer in New Zealand every year; a death toll higher than the almost 400 New Zealanders who die on our roads.
More than 600 women lose their lives to breast cancer in New Zealand every year; a death toll higher than the almost 400 New Zealanders who die on our roads.
The NZBCF is an action-based national organisation that aims to prevent New Zealand women developing and dying from breast cancer. “Whether it is promoting the life-saving benefits of screening mammograms, providing free public seminars about breast cancer or community outreach programmes to support those living with the disease, we are at the forefront of the campaign to stop New Zealanders dying from breast cancer,” says executive trustee Heather Shotter.
The NZBCF has committed $1.25 million this year to fund community-based rehabilitation and support programmes and special projects designed to help women deal with the physical and psychological effects of a breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.
This funding has enabled the personalised exercise programme Pink Pilates to expand to 12 centres around New Zealand. The YWCA Encore programme of gentle pool-based exercise has six additional new trainers thanks to funding from the NZBCF.
The Sweet Louise Foundation for women with secondary breast cancer has launched in Wellington with plans to expand into other centres in 2010. The Foundation has taken action against breast cancer in Counties Manukau, this year providing almost $300,000 for a new Full Field Digital Mammography Machine for the BreastScreen unit at Counties Manukau District Health Board.
The NZBCF has also increased its commitment to research and moved a step closer to its goal of a National Breast Cancer Register when it launched another Breast Cancer Patient Register in Christchurch in September. “The public needs to know that their funding is making a difference to women with breast cancer, both for improving treatment and research into what causes the disease and by improving the quality of life for those affected by breast cancer,” says Heather.
The NZBCF is dedicated to improving treatment outcomes for women with breast cancer and supporting women and their families who live with the disease. It needs your support this October to ensure their programmes can expand and benefit more New Zealanders. Go to www.nzbcf.org.nz for more information about what is happening in your town.
1. Register
You require regular screening mammograms if you are over 40. If you are aged between 45 and 69, these are free through BreastScreen Aotearoa (phone 0800 270 200)
2. Be ‘Breast Aware’
Attend a free Breast Cancer Education Seminar. Know what looks and feels normal for your breasts
3. Join in
There are hundreds of community fundraising events around New Zealand. Go to www.nzbcf.org.nz to find out what’s happening near you
4. Be ‘Positively Pink’
Purchase a pink product from NZBCF sponsors and supporters
5. Subscribe
For every annual subscription to Good magazine, $9 will go to NZBCF. Click here to subscribe
