USU joins fight against breast cancer
The best protection is early detection. That is the message the Student Health and Wellness Center and student group Colleges Against Cancer tried to convey to students in a combined effort to promote Breast Cancer Awareness Days, Wednesday and Thursday.
Students were encouraged to wear pink as they checked out the breast cancer awareness booths. Volunteers handed out a variety of informational pamphlets on the importance of self-breast examinations and early detection. Pink ribbons and stickers were also given to students to draw attention to Breast Cancer Awareness month.
Everything centered around the theme of “the best protection is early detection.” Pamphlets from the booth emphasized the fact that early knowledge of cancer saves lives. According to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, one out of eight women will get breast cancer at some time in life. “Almost every student that we’ve had come to our booth has been able to tell us stories of family members or friends who have gotten breast cancer,” said Sasha Beoronia, an intern at the Health and Wellness Center.
Because of her mother’s past diagnosis, USU student Maddy Beus knows just how relevant breast cancer is to everyday students like her.
“I was shocked when she told me. We all just stared at her,” Beus said.
Her mother was smart and lucky; she found a lump during a routine self-exam and called her oncologist right away, Beus said.
“The doctors assured us she was going to be okay because they caught it early,” she said.
Getting students to realize that self-testing, even in one’s 20’s, is the key to beating breast cancer.
“We want students to be aware that breast cancer is a problem,” Beoronia said. “We want them to have information available to them if they want to learn how to do self-breast exams.”
During self-examinations, signs to watch for are lumps, swelling and a change in size or shape of the breast. If breast cancer is found early, there are more treatments available. More treatments mean a higher chance of survival.
“Make sure that you keep up on your self-breast exams,” Beorochia said.
Thanks to self-exams, early detection,and cancer awareness there are 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the United States, today, she said.
“It’s a good thing just to get people talking about it. Most people our age don’t even think about breast cancer. They think it’s only going to affect the older generation. It’s something we need to be aware of,” Beus said.
Colleges Against Cancer had “Cancer Sucks” T-shirts. The club also raised a call for volunteers at its April event “Race for the Cure.” Each team in the relay will have 10-15 people and one captain. The race starts at 6:00 p.m. and goes until early the next morning.
“We have one person per team on the track at a time, which signifies that cancer doesn’t sleep, so neither will we,” said Colleges Against Cancer President Kasie Barger.
Last year’s race raised $23,000 for cancer research, Barger said. The club is not only looking for participants but for students who are willing to give a hand in planning events.
Colleges Against Cancer has also organized a pink tulip-planting event for the third week of October to raise breast cancer awareness. The tulips will be planted along the Animal Science Building. When they bloom in the spring, Barger said her club hopes the flowers will remind people to be aware of the prevalence of the disease and the necessary precautions needed to fight it.
– marissa.shields@aggiemail.usu.edu