Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month can mean different things to different people. For some, it’s a trigger — 31 days in the fall of pink-ribbon reminders of a disease that forever changed them. For others, it’s a chance to show their support for the more than 2 million women around the world who are diagnosed with the disease each year.1
Understanding the goals behind the global campaign and the emotions felt by the many different people living with the disease may help you decide if and how you want to commemorate the month.
What is Breast Cancer Awareness Month?
Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an international health campaign that’s held every October. The month aims to promote screening and reduce the risk of the disease, which affects 2.4 million women worldwide.1 Known best for its pink theme color, the month features a number of campaigns and programs designed to:
support people diagnosed with breast cancer, including those with metastatic breast cancer
educate people about breast cancer risk factors
motivate people — including those who identify as women, men, non-binary, or trans — to learn about their risk of breast cancer
encourage people to go for regular breast cancer screening — for women, regular scans begin at age 40 or earlier, depending on personal breast cancer risk
raise money for breast cancer research
In the month of October, there are also specific dates designed to raise awareness of specific groups within the breast cancer community.
Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day (October 13)
October 13 is nationally recognized in the U.S. as Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day. About 155,000 women in the U.S. are estimated to have metastatic breast cancer (cancer that spreads beyond the breast to other parts of the body).2 Some researchers believe this number will rise to over 246,000 living with the disease by 2030.3 Despite the growing numbers of people living with metastatic disease, most money for breast cancer research doesn’t go toward studying it.
Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day seeks to educate the public about the challenges that people with metastatic breast cancer face as well as the need for more research — and more treatments — for this deadly disease.
The day also serves as a reminder that people can do all the right things — breast cancer screenings and all the recommended treatments for early-stage breast cancer — and still have cancer spread to other parts of the body. As sf-cakes, a member of the Breastcancer.org Community, shared, “Being stage IV during Breast Cancer Awareness Month sucks. All the messaging about ‘if you catch it early, you'll be fine,’ is simply not always true.”
Men’s Breast Cancer Awareness Week (October 17–23)
Although breast cancer is much more common in women, breast cancer affects men, too. In 2021, President Joe Biden designated October 17 to October 23 Men’s Breast Cancer Awareness Week. The American Cancer Society estimates that about 2,670 men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2026, and about 530 will die from the disease.4 But lack of awareness and stigma can be barriers to detection and care in men, trans men, and non-binary people.
The history of Breast Cancer Awareness Month
The event began in 1985 as a week-long awareness campaign by the American Cancer Society, in partnership with Imperial Chemical Industries, a British company that made tamoxifen. The campaign eventually grew into a month-long event.
In 1992, the pink ribbon came into play after Alexandra Penney, SELF magazine's editor-in-chief, partnered with Evelyn Lauder, Estée Lauder's senior corporate vice president and a breast cancer survivor, to distribute pink ribbons after the magazine’s second annual Breast Cancer Awareness Month issue.
Other variations of the pink ribbon have emerged in recent years to raise awareness that all people with breast cancer are not the same. These include ribbons for raising awareness about metastatic breast cancer, men with breast cancer, inflammatory breast cancer, and more.
Breast Cancer Awareness Month controversy
Although many people feel supported by the month’s events, activities, and pink merchandise, others strongly dislike Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Seeing pink ribbons at every turn — and the “celebrations” — can seem like a distraction from the very real need for a better understanding of the disease and more research leading to better treatments.
Many in the Breastcancer.org Community have shared their feelings about Breast Cancer Awareness Month:
“I already feel overwhelmed and triggered by [Breast Cancer Awareness Month] and it isn't even here yet,” wrote Keris113. “I wish that there was more done by these organizations … to promote funding for research and treatments that could help both [metastatic breast cancer] and potentially earlier stages as well.”
“We all have a special ability to create breast cancer awareness year round,” wrote mountainmia. “We all have knowledge and stories we can share that are unique and powerful.”
“I’m in favor of anything that brings attention to a worthy cause,” wrote Breastcancer.org Community member Brilee76. “It’s amazing how oblivious I was to breast cancer before my mom experienced it. … Education is key.”
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Many people are also offended by what’s become known as “pinkwashing.” This is the term used to describe when companies use pink ribbons to sell their products — but those products may increase the risk of breast cancer.
“As October 1 Breast Cancer Awareness month approaches, I am starting to see posts of products being sold by private businesses that really don't support breast cancer programs,” wrote Community member brutersmom. “They call us survivors or warriors. Sadly I don't feel like a warrior or a survivor.”
Learn more about breast cancer
For all its controversy, Breast Cancer Awareness Month can be a good reminder to learn more about breast cancer. Some good places to start might be examining your risk of developing the disease, giving yourself a breast exam, and scheduling your next breast cancer screenings.
U.S. breast cancer statistics
People of every country, race, ethnic group, and income level are affected by breast cancer. In the U.S., the percentage of women diagnosed with breast cancer has been slowly rising for the past couple of decades.
A woman in the U.S. today has a 1 in 8 chance of developing breast cancer over her lifetime and a 1 in 43 chance of dying from breast cancer.5
Between 20% and 30% of people diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer develop metastatic breast cancer.2
Lesbian, gay, and bisexual cisgender women may have a higher risk of breast cancer than heterosexual women due to risk factors like fewer childbirths and higher alcohol use.6
The average lifetime risk that a man in the U.S. will develop breast cancer is 1 in 755.4
Transfeminine people taking gender-affirming hormone therapy, including estrogen, are at a higher risk of developing breast cancer than cisgender men.7
There are about 4 million breast cancer survivors in the U.S., including women receiving breast cancer treatment.5
While the percentage of women dying from breast cancer has gone down in recent decades, Black women remain more likely to die from breast cancer than women of any other racial or ethnic group.5
Things to do this Breast Cancer Awareness Month
If you know someone who is living with breast cancer or has been affected by the disease, check in with them to ask them how they’re doing.
Schedule your annual mammogram. Encourage your friends and family to do the same.
Learn more about breast cancer and how it affects people’s lives from Breastcancer.org’s news, educational content, podcasts, and more.
Join community discussion forums to ask questions or connect with others. Breastcancer.org also hosts multiple virtual support groups each week.
If you’d like to support breast cancer research and programs that support people touched by breast cancer, consider donating directly to organizations that do this work, like Breastcancer.org. When you give, your donation goes directly to what you read, hear, and see on Breastcancer.org.
References
1. Breast cancer fact sheet. World Health Organization.
2. MBC Facts. Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance
3. Gogate A et al. Projecting the Prevalence and Costs of Metastatic Breast Cancer From 2015 through 2030. JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2021; doi: 10.1093/jncics/pkab063.
4. Key Statistics for Breast Cancer in Men. American Cancer Society.
5. Key Statistics for Breast Cancer. American Cancer Society.
6. Williams AD, Bleicher RJ, Ciocca RM. Breast Cancer Risk, Screening, and Prevalence Among Sexual Minority Women: An Analysis of the National Health Interview Survey. LGBT Health. 2020 doi: 10.1089/lgbt.2019.0274.
7. de Blok C J M et al. Breast cancer risk in transgender people receiving hormone treatment: nationwide cohort study in the Netherlands. BMJ. 2019 doi:10.1136/bmj.l1652.