Susan G. Komen for the Cure®'s Circle of Promise Joins the 17th Annual Kwanzaafest, gathers black women for a call to action about breast cancer

(December 08, 2007, Dallas)

Circle of Promise and Komen On the Go™ to distribute information and gifts on Dec. 8 and 9

To celebrate Kwanzaa and its spirit of giving, Susan G. Komen for the Cure® will honor breast cancer survivors and increase breast cancer awareness at the 17th annual KwanzaaFest in Dallas. The two-day event will take place on Saturday, Dec. 8 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 9 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Automobile Building at Fair Park.

Each year, KwanzaaFest features national recording artists, exhibitors from across the country, vendors, health screenings and other activities free of charge. Susan G. Komen for the Cure® is the leader of the global breast cancer movement, and this year, the organization will showcase its Circle of Promise campaign, which is dedicated to ending breast cancer in the black community. Additionally, the Komen On the Go™ educational vehicle will be on hand to provide interactive exhibits, information and an instructional guide to breast self-examination (BSE) to encourage women to take control of their health and get others to do the same.

Despite great strides made in the breast cancer movement for all women, the disease continues to have a disproportionate impact on the African-American community. From 2000-2003 African-American women had a 36 percent higher breast cancer death rate than white women, giving them the highest death rate and poorest survival rate of any other racial or ethnic group. While 90 percent of white women diagnosed with breast cancer survive for at least five years, only 77 percent of black women survive for that long.

Overall, mammography is still the most effective screening tool for breast cancer today. Getting screened regularly for breast cancer is the best way for a woman to lower her risk of dying from the disease because screening tests can find breast cancer early, when it’s most treatable.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure® wants to rally African-American women to the forefront of the breast cancer fight by joining its Circle of Promise campaign. Registering through the interactive site, www.circleofpromise.org, is the first step to become a Circle of Promise ambassador and to encourage other women to do the same. Information about breast cancer and breast health in general is also available at www.komen.org.

The Circle of Promise is an unprecedented campaign to engage African-American women to help end breast cancer forever. The campaign educates women on empowering themselves and other black women to take actions that will save lives. The campaign’s goal is to recruit 100,000 ambassadors.

“The Circle of Promise campaign goes hand-in-hand with Kwanzaa,” said Circle of Promise Ambassador Dr. Sheron Patterson, a health and wellness consultant and breast cancer survivor. “One of the principles of Kwanzaa is Ujima which means collective work and responsibility. As black women, we have the responsibility to educate one another and to work together to find a cure.”

Dr. Patterson details her journey as a breast cancer survivor at www.drsheron.com

Circle of Promise ambassadors will be charged with encouraging other women to get involved in the breast cancer movement, supporting public policy efforts to provide more women access to the health care they need; spreading the word about breast cancer awareness and the vital need for early detection and treatment; and raising funds for research and community programming.

At KwanzaaFest, sign-up forms will be available at booth No. 175 for women to join the Circle of Promise and to learn more about the campaign. Participants will have the chance to receive prizes and giveaways. Participants will also learn about ways to get involved with Komen in the Dallas, Fort Worth and North Texas areas.

As a platinum sponsor of KwanzaaFest, Susan G. Komen for the Cure® will distribute information about breast cancer awareness and its impact on African-American women. A roundtable panel discussion with breast cancer survivors and breast health professionals, moderated by Komen’s senior scientific advisor Dr. Dwight Randle, is scheduled for 1 p.m. Dec. 8 at the Carol Brandon Breast Health Booth.

About Susan G. Komen for the Cure®

Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever. In 1982, that promise became Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and launched the global breast cancer movement. Today, Komen for the Cure is the world's largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Thanks to events like the Komen Race for the Cure, we have invested nearly $1 billion to fulfill our promise, becoming the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world. For more information about Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, breast health or breast cancer, visit www.komen.org or call 1-877 GO KOMEN.