In addition to trying to beat Texas Tech at 3 p.m. on Sunday, the Lady Aggies will also try to raise money for the Susan G. Gomen for the Cure effort to to find a cure for breast cancer.
Here are some details on the event.
HELP BEAT THE HELL OUTTA BREAST CANCER
The “Think Pink” national campaign set forth by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) is an initiative to raise breast cancer awareness in women’s basketball, on campuses and in communities. More than 900 schools nationwide will participate in “Think Pink” week which begins on Feb. 8 and concludes on Feb. 17. Texas A&M will participate in its own “Think Pink” game on Sunday. The Aggies will host the second-annual “Beat the Hell Outta Breast Cancer” game versus the Lady Raiders at Reed Arena. A&M’s goal is to raise $35,000 that will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which is the world’s largest and most progressive grass roots network of breast cancer survivors and activists. A “BTHO Breast Cancer” 5K Fun Run sponsored by Chevron will be held in conjunction with the game and T-shirts will also be sold for $5 at various locations. A special reserved pink ticket can also be purchased for the game. The cost is $10, which includes an $8 contribution to the Komen Foundation and a $2 ticket. Seating will be the best available seat at the preferred seating level. Standard ticket prices for the “BTHO Breast Cancer” game are $11 for courtside, $9 for mezzanine and $5 for gallery. Tickets may be purchased online at www.12thManFoundation.com or by via phone at: 1-888-99-AGGIE. For more information on the “BTHO Breast Cancer” game and its surrounding festivities, please visit the event’s special website at www.AggieAthletics.com.
BLAIR PLEDGES DONATION TO KAY YOW/WBCA CANCER FUND
Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair will donate $5 to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s cancer fund for every A&M student who attends Sunday’s “BTHO Breast Cancer” game. A&M will look to “Pink Out” Reed Arena. The Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund and the “Think Pink” initiative is a global, unified effort among the WBCA’s legion of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across college campuses, in local communities and beyond. Yow, in her 33rd season as the head coach at North Carolina State, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987 and is currently battling the disease for the third time.
BREAST CANCER FACTS
• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death for all women and the leading overall cause of cancer death in women between the ages of 20 and 59.
• In the United States, breast cancer is expected to be newly diagnosed every three minutes, and a woman will die from breast cancer every 13 minutes.
• African American women have a higher breast cancer death rate than women of any other racial or ethnic population.
• Eighty percent of all breast tumors are benign.
• In 2007, it was estimated that there would be 178,480 new cases of breast cancer in women and 2,030 new cases of breast cancer in men. Of these, an estimated 40,460 women and 450 men will die from the disease.
• The basic treatment choices for breast cancer are surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and hormonal therapy.
• The most common risk factors of breast cancer are sex, age, personal history, family history and breast cancer genes.
• The highest risk factor for breast cancer is being female with the disease being 100 times more common among women.
• The risk of breast cancer increases as a woman grows older.
• Women who have had breast cancer and women with a history of breast disease may develop it again.
• The risk of developing breast cancer increases for a woman whose mother, sister, daughter or two or more relatives have had the disease.
• Women who begin menstruating before the age of 12 are at an increased risk of developing breast cancer - the more menstrual cycles a woman gets over her lifetime, the more likely she is to get the disease.
• Early pregnancies may help to lower the chances of getting breast cancer, but these same hormonal changes may work in reverse and contribute to the incidence of breast cancer after age 35.
• Women who experience continuous menstrual cycles until menopause are at a higher than average risk for breast cancer.
• There are several lifestyle choices that individuals can make to help reduce breast cancer risk including decreasing daily fat intake (especially saturated and hydrogenated), increasing fiber, eating fresh fruits and vegetables, limiting alcohol, staying active and not smoking.
• The best available method to detect breast cancer early is a mammography screening.
• Breast cancer is the most invasive cancer among women in the U.S. accounting for nearly one out of every three cancers diagnosed.
• An estimated 178,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to occur in 2007.
*Source: American Cancer Society – www.cancer.org
_ John Miller
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