Today, Senator Barack Obama made a statement in support and recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I’m pasting it here, for you, because I think you should read it (I’m going to put the points I want you to take note of in bold:
Today, I’m proud to add my voice in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For me, the fight against cancer is deeply personal. My mother died of ovarian cancer in the prime of her life. And at a time when she should have been focused on getting well, she was lying …read more

You’re not going to believe what I just read!
According to a new study by the not-for-profit National Women’s Health Resource Center (NWHRC), the nation’s leading source for women’s health information, women who are dissatisfied with their overall physical appearance are significantly less likely to be up to date with preventive screenings, such as mammography and breast self-exam.
Oh goodness … this worries me so much. Just another reason to believe that developing a positive body image is key to a woman’s health and wellness.
So this seems this is a good time to ask yourself a few questions, questions posed by a …read more

I just read today’s New York Times article that explained the results of a Canadian research initiative:
Three weeks of radiation treatment work just as well as the usual course of five weeks or more for women with early-stage breast cancers.
After my first diagnosis and partial mastectomy, I was treated with the very typical seven weeks of daily radiation therapy. Limiting my treatment to three weeks? Well, that certainly would have greatly reduced the number of weeks I was down and out after that go ’round.
And for some people, a shorter duration might actually be a reason to go ahead with …read more

In June I warned you about Fake Cancer Claims; at that time, the FDA had issued complaints to 23 companies that were making fraudulent claims to prevent and cure cancer.
Well, last week the FTC filed complaints against 11 companies also making fraudulent claims … here’s a quote from an ABC news article on the topic:

Those selling the purported cures — some made from laetrile, a natural substance found in apricots, peaches and almonds, as well as herbs, shark cartilage or mushroom extracts — are being accused of relying on deceptive advertising in what the FTC described as a “breathtaking” violation …read more

There’s a poll in the sidebar asking you what it is that brings you to the Pink Ribbon Review. Please participate so I can better serve you in the future. Thank you!

We’re just a few short weeks away from Breast Cancer Awareness Month … and the news stories relating to breast cancer that I’m becoming privy to have increased exponentially. I thought it would be best to just do a few round-up posts for you to peruse … pick and choose what you like … and I’ll just keep ‘em coming your way!
First, you should know that a new …read more

Don’t forget the current pink ribbon giveaway: a Pure Romance Gift Collection (follow that link to enter)!

Health.com is the web affiliate of Health Magazine; and this month, I was used as a source for an article written by Anne Krueger called “The Survivor Files: Amazing Women Share Their Breast Cancer Journeys.”
Here’s the paragraph on me:
Connecticut mother of three Karen Lynch, who writes for pinkribbonreview.com, appears to have survived breast cancer with her sense of humor intact. Through two bouts with the disease, a double mastectomy, and a TRAM flap reconstruction, she has blogged about everything from breast nicknames (she dubbed …read more

Written by Pamela Paul, in The New York Times Magazine last weekend.
I just got around to it today — and let me tell you, it was excellent. Here are a few highlights:
“The decisions you have to make when a woman has cancer are difficult enough,” Dr. Ann Partridge, an oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, says. “Throw in the fact that she’s pregnant, and now we have another party to think about, the fetus.”
I cannot imagine anything worse than having to think about the effect of your treatment on your unborn child. But is it common, you ask, that …read more

I’m not terribly interested in politics. I’m registered to vote as an independent — never aligning with a party because I haven’t wanted a political affiliation to skew my take on who the best person for the job is. I wasn’t even sure who Joe Biden was until Barack Obama named him as his running mate.
Here’s what I found out about Joe Biden (and his wife Jill) that has me tickled pink (in addition to the fact that he’s a Senator from Delaware):

Senator Biden was honored as “A Pink Ribbon Crusader” by the Avon Foundation for his support of legislation …read more

Some projects are so BIG they require a whole new approach …
That’s the tagline on the home page for the Victory Project, founded by Mike Dewey, a site and an initiative designed to change the way we approach finding a cure for breast cancer. There’s some media buzz right now about Mr. Dewey … so I checked it out to get you the information.

Mike’s wife has breast cancer. Her sister, her aunt, her mother … all have been diagnosed with the disease. He has two beautiful daughters … and he has faced the reality that one or both of …read more

Yesterday I received a media advisory email stating this: “New Guidelines Against Breast Self-Examination Could Seriously Endanger Women’s Health,” says Dr. Marisa Weiss, President and Founder of breastcancer.org.
New Danish guidelines advising the population not to perform BSEs are supported by a review – to be released later today – of BSE studies previously conducted in Russia and China. The review, co-authored by Dr. Peter Gotzsche, suggests that breast self-exams do not reduce deaths from cancer and “cannot be recommended.”
I requested a copy of the review so I could investigate the issue for you. Here’s the deal:
The review was conducted by …read more