Breast cancer in Belgium
Breast cancer is the most common cancer amongst women. Below, we list some striking statistics about the disease:
- 100,000 women are currently fighting breast cancer in Belgium.
- 10,500 new patients are diagnosed each year.
- That means 29 new diagnoses a day.
- 1 in 9 women are affected by breast cancer in Belgium.
- Men can also get breast cancer: about 100 men living in Belgium get the disease each year.
What is Pink Ribbon?
Prevention:
Did you know that 1 in 3 cancer diagnoses can be avoided by adopting a healthier and more balanced lifestyle? If you exercise for at least 30 minutes every day, control your weight and avoid alcohol, tobacco and drugs, you are already well on track. Pink Ribbon feels it is important to inform the general public and raise awareness about this issue.
Detection:
Did you know that when diagnosed early, 9 out of 10 breast cancer patients will still be alive after 5 years and the majority will have overcome the disease? It is a hopeful fact, but one that is not sufficiently known.
The sooner you detect breast cancer, the less invasive the treatment will be and the greater the chance of being cured.
Psychosocial care:
Did you know that there is still a lot of room for improvement in terms of the right way of communicating with patients and their families? When a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, the medical staff will be focusing mainly on the treatment. This is obviously necessary, but not sufficient. Once the diagnosis has been made and patients leave the doctor's surgery, they often feel a great deal of anxiety with many questions about the future. In order to address all these questions, clear and transparent communication is very important.
The history of Pink Ribbon
Evelyn Lauder, daughter-in-law of Estée Lauder, launched the first Breast Cancer Awareness campaign and created the small Pink Ribbon in 1992, a time when thousands of women were dying of breast cancer but the topic was hardly ever talked about. The Pink Ribbon immediately became the universal symbol for breast health. Convinced of the importance of communication in the fight against this disease, Evelyn Lauder worked tirelessly on the Pink Ribbon campaigns to raise public awareness, inform people about breast cancer and raise funds for scientific breast cancer research. Evelyn Lauder unfortunately passed away in November 2011, but her efforts will live on in the Pink Ribbon.
In Belgium, the non-profit organisation Pink Ribbon is the national organisation that supports the fight against breast cancer with various projects. To finance our projects, we raise funds that are managed by the King Baudouin Foundation. Every donation that is made contributes to our mission.
