Warning: This column might be so politically incorrect that you may feel the need to send me harassing e-mails. During October, this sacred month commemorating breast cancer awareness, our commitment to the cause may be diverting our attention from diseases in greater need of our attention.
Earlier this month, more than 65,000 walkers and runners came together in Denver for the nation’s largest Race for the Cure. In T-shirts emblazoned with pink ribbons, accessorized with pink socks, pink hats and matching pink shoes, participants made their way through Denver in support of survivors and finding a cure.
The pink-ribbon craze has become a national phenomenon topped only by our addiction to “American Idol.” Here are just a few of the pink items you can buy that advertise as providing financial support for breast cancer research: a $250 cashmere sweater, $16 underwear, $3 lip balm, crystal toe rings, and Campbell’s soup.
The shoe company New Balance advertises more than 30 “pink ribbon” items, ranging from women’s golf shoes to men’s “co-survivor” T-shirts. Costco sells pink ribbon lint rollers in bulk. Kitchen-Aid features an entire Cook for the Cure line. Target has 46 “pink ribbon” items on its website. That’s before you get to eBay, which has more than 2,000 such items listed.
I thought I had seen it all – that is, until last weekend, when I saw a hemp-based lotion bottle boasting a pink marijuana leaf. Talk about market saturation. The only thing missing now are pink Halloween pumpkins.
Breast cancer awareness has become a marketing tool of savvy corporations. It’s a smart move. Pink sells. We eagerly buy products marked up in the name of giving back. One example: The upscale vacuum company Oreck boasts on its website that it donates $50 from the sale of each of its $550 Pink Ribbon XL Ultra cleaners to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Meanwhile, if you want the XL Ultra without the pink ribbon, you’ll need to plunk down $500. Who is making the donation now?
While we can pat ourselves on the back for opening our wallets in support of fighting breast cancer, another approach is warranted to get the best bang for our buck in the effort to save lives.
We need to talk about heart disease and lung cancer, the two top killers of women. According to the American Cancer Association, lung cancer will take more than 160,000 lives this year, four times the number of breast cancer deaths. Every year, nearly 40 percent of all U.S. deaths are caused by heart disease, while all cancers together cause 23 percent.
To be fair, we must also stop focusing solely on women. Heart disease and cancer’s toll on our men are equally astounding. According to the ACA, more than 230,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year – more than the 211,000 women who will learn they have breast cancer.
Let’s also talk about colon cancer, the second-deadliest cancer for men. While most women are comfortable (or at least familiar) with regular mammograms, men continue to neglect colon and prostate screenings, only going at the nagging of their wives.
Why aren’t we out walking in droves for men, encouraging colonoscopies and prostate exams? We neglect these essential tests because they’re embarrassing or awkward. Silence is killing our men.
Part of our public focus is simply the result of outstanding work by the Komen Foundation. Certainly, it provides a model for other organizations to implement. This assumes, however, that we’d open our wallets to other causes with the same fervor. About 1,000 people came out for the American Lung Association’s Run the Register event this year.
Yes, breast cancer is deadly, but we need to put its toll in perspective. There is an entire rainbow of ribbons we should also be wearing: teal stands for ovarian cancer, clear stands for lung cancer, yellow is for bladder cancer or sarcoma, while periwinkle is for esophageal and burgundy for multiple myeloma. Wear ivory with burgundy if you want to support head and neck cancer and purple for Leiomyosarcoma. Colon cancer’s ribbons are brown and prostate cancer’s are light blue.
Confused? If you want to show your support for those suffering from any type of cancer, you can wear a lavender ribbon. But wait. Some websites list lavender as the color for sexual harassment awareness, with Paula Jones championing the cause. Lavender is also the color of choice for epilepsy consciousness. There are even ribbons for Restless Leg Syndrome sufferers.
The bottom line: In the rush for pink DustBusters and $50 pink candles, we have lost focus of our other priorities. This year, in lieu of a pink ribbon, I’ll be wearing brown and light blue in support of my husband – another nagging reminder of my commitment to his prostate and colon health and, ultimately, our life together. Oh, the romance.
Jessica Peck Corry (Jessica@i2i.org) serves as a public policy analyst with the Independence Institute in Golden, where she specializes in civil rights, higher education, and land use policy.
