Breast cancer has 50 times the funding of prostate cancer, and kills only about 5,000 more people annually. I just don't get it.
Cancer - 5 Answers
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1 :
It's not just the number of deaths, it's how many are affected. Breast cancer occurs in one out of 5 women. Five women die every HOUR from breast cancer. So I don't know where you get your figures from. It also affects much younger people, in the prime of life. Prostate cancer occurs in 1 out of 11 men. Prostate also occurs late in life and as my dad's doctor said, he was more likely to die with it than of it. Prostate cancer has a 90% survival rate for five years.
2 :
About 1 in 8 women and 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with these cancers sometime in their life. Almost 30000 men each year die from prostate cancer. Almost 40500 women and about 450 men died last year of breast cancer. Don't know where your info came from. The United States invests approximately $16,700 to find a cure for each life lost to prostate cancer; more than $21,800 for each life lost to breast cancer, and about $160,000 for each life lost to AIDS. Those are the actual stats and I know where you're coming from. I had a brain tumor and everytime I went to my various drs offices, there was breast cancer awareness info everywhere. Pink things everywhere. All the magazines I got to read were about breast cancer. I felt left out! I told my dr I was jealous and felt left out of the "group" because I had brain cancer. He just smiled! He's always told me I'm his most unique patient.
3 :
April gave you some good information. I would like to add that breast cancer has a powerful lobby that pushes a lot of the funding by Congress. Additionally, most women that are diagnosed with breast cancer eventually die from the cancer. However, most men with prostate cancer die from something other than the prostate cancer (because most cases of prostate cancer are slow-growing types). Best wishes and good luck.
4 :
Thanks April for those statistics. I'm going to address myself to the issue of fundraising and breast cancer. I agree that awareness needs to be raised about other cancers too.and while I hate 'competitive illness' I can see why there is resentment about an imbalance in awareness raising and fund raising. BUT...the reason breast cancer is so high profile is simple - sheer hard work. Breast cancer awareness campaigns and BC Awareness Month started as a campaign by ordinary women, many of them with cancer, to raise awareness so that people knew the symptoms, examined themselves regularly, attended their routine mammograms etc. Enthusiastic participation and hard work by women made it grow into something nationally, then internationally, recognised (and then big business cashed in). Any group of people can start such an awareness campaign for any illness. There are other cancer awareness months, ribbons etc; but no cancer campaign has had the sheer hard work put into it that breast cancer awareness has. If prostate cancer awareness is a cause close to your heart (good for you if it is) there is nothing to stop you and a few friends starting a campaign in the same way those few women who started the whole breast cancer awareness campaign did. You'll have to be as dedicated as they were and work as hard as they did though.
5 :
It all depends on what has a high profile image that celebrities can identify with. There are about 200 cancers; many receive very little funding for research, until a celebrity becomes involved - look at Kylie Minogue (her having cancer did an enormous amount of profile raising for younger women with cancer); I am sure Patrick Swayze and Jade Goody would rather not have the publicity, but the one good thing to come out of their cancers is that charities will receive more money. In the 80s and 90s it became 'fashionable' for women to support breast cancer charities. Suddenly this had a high profile, and celebrities were kind enough to fund raise. Then along came AIDS, and celebs. such as Elton John and Elizabeth Taylor became involved in fund raising. Sadly, there are many, many diseases that do not have a high profile, that desperately need funding, but have to rely on the enthusiasm of a few supporters. That is why, on my website www.after-cancer.com, under Events I list both large and small events in aid of cancer. If you want to have fun, do support one of them near you. Verite R
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