Breast Cancer

It all started at Night of Champions, when John Cena traded in his green attire for pink, signaling the beginning of an official partnership between WWE and Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Until Raw on Monday, pink ribbons were worn by Supersatars, Divas, broadcasters and referees. The entrance ramp, announce table and ring skirts were co-branded. The middle rope was pink. PSAs ran frequently during WWE programming. WWE dove head first into this breast cancer initiative, headlined by all proceeds of John Cena's “Rise Above Cancer” apparel going to fight the cause.

Pimlico Race Course and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world's largest breast cancer organization, announced that they will partner on Black-Eyed Susan Day on May 14 to raise money to aid awareness and research. Pimlico has pledged to raise a minimum of $100,000 for Komen for the Cure. Fifty percent of the money raised will go to the Komen Maryland Affiliate to use for community outreach programs in Maryland, and half will be used for life-saving breast cancer research. In addition to the 86th running of the Grade II Black-Eyed Susan Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, the day will feature a pari-mutuel race showcasing legendary retired female riders and the second-annual $50,000 Pimlico Jockey Challenge, in which eight of the nation's top jockeys compete in four races with points awarded based upon their finish.

The Maryland affiliate of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure has awarded $2.2 million to 26 local health departments, hospitals and other programs to provide free mammograms, breast exams and diagnostic tests. The money will also be used for support programs, patient mentoring, meals, transportation, outreach in minority communities and financial assistance for those in treatment. Recipient groups include: Allegany County Health Department; Baltimore County Department of Health; Baltimore Medical System Inc.; Calvert Memorial Hospital; Cecil County Health Department; Center for a Healthy Maryland Inc.; Chase Brexton Health Services Inc.; Franklin Square Hospital; Harbor Hospital Foundation; Howard County Health Department; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; MAC Inc.; Maryland General Hospital; Mercy Medical Center; Meritus Health; Moveable Feast Inc.; Northwest Hospital Center Inc.; Nueva Vida; St. Mary's Hospital; The Pro Bono Counseling Project; The Red Devils; University of Maryland Medical System Foundation; Wicomico County Health Department; Peninsula Regional Medical Center; and University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Mary Ivey didn't have a family history of breast cancer or a genetic mutation putting her at high risk for the disease. At 37, she was too young for an annual mammogram. But one day in March, she did a routine self-exam, as her doctor had instructed her, just in case. She found a marble-sized lump in her left breast. It was cancer. Now, Ivey bristles at a federal panel's new guidelines that say women shouldn't bother formally examining their breasts because the self-exam - emphasized as a key health tool for so many years - shows no evidence of saving lives.

If you can bear the pun, these breast cancer survivors are all in the same boat. And they are paddling as if their lives depended on it. Cheryl Brower, three years out from being diagnosed with cancer, has organized a group of women with breast cancer from Baltimore, Annapolis and Washington to take up the oars of a huge dragon boat. The women will be competing in Saturday's dragon boat races at Tide Point Waterfront Park near the Domino's Sugar plant. "It is the best team sport ever invented, and I've been in team sports all my life," said Brower, an Ellicott City attorney and mother of four who has competed in dragon boat races internationally.

A Maryland House member is trying to preserve insurance coverage for early breast cancer screenings in the wake of a November report that disputed the usefulness of those tests. Del. Donna Stifler, a Harford County Republican, presented a mammogram bill last week to the House Health and Government Committee that would require insurers to follow the American Cancer Society's 2010 breast cancer guidelines. Maryland law follows ACS' most up-to-date recommendations. The bill was drafted in reaction to a report in November by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, in the Department of Health and Human Services, that said women only need mammograms every two years starting at age 50. The 2010 ACS guidelines call for women in their 20s and 30s to receive mammograms every three years that would be covered by their insurance, nonprofit health service plan or health maintenance organization.

"Mom. Do you have that gene? Do I? Have you been tested? I thought Grandma had breast cancer . Why weren't you ever tested?" The questions from my 27-year-old daughter were coming fast. Angelina Jolie published an essay in The New York Times on Tuesday, saying that she had had both breasts removed, and then reconstructed, after learning that she carried the mutated gene that can predispose women to breast and ovarian cancer. And Jessie was on the phone to me. Family history had moved the actress to get tested.

Gwen Jocson couldn't help but notice the symmetry when she reflected on her first competitive race in more than a decade. Jocson, 43, began her relatively brief but highly successful career with a victory in 1989, then capped it with a win in a race Friday afternoon. "Well, I won my first race and I won my last race. If I hadn't won this race, I'd have to go back to riding and get back even. It felt great because it was for a cause," Jocson said. Injuries prematurely ended Jocson's career.

Many cancer patients end treatment underweight. Post-treatment breast cancer patients, however, often end up overweight. This can sometimes be attributed to medications such as steroids or chemotherapy. Or the patient is overweight to begin with. Losing this weight is a worthy goal as overweight and obese patients have an increased risk for cancer recurrence, studies say, as well as chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Find your Body Mass Index, a measure of your weight in kilograms divided by your height in meters squared.

As a matter of principle, members of the Annapolis firefighters union are facing fines of up to $1,000 a day and six-month prison terms. Their offense: selling breast cancer awareness T-shirts. "We're trying to do something good for the community and we're getting hassled," said union President Lt. Caroll Spriggs. City officials told the union it needs a solicitor's license to collect donations on public property, setting off a debate that divided the city council and infuriated the union.