Help the National Breast Cancer Foundation bridge the gap in breast cancer research funding
26 April, 2017: The National Breast Cancer Foundation is giving Australian corporates and community members the opportunity to climb Sydney Harbour Bridge on 18 May to raise vital funds for life-changing breast cancer research.
The Bridge to Zero Deaths event will give National Breast Cancer Foundation fundraisers and supporters the experience of a lifetime: a spectacular climb of Australia’s most iconic bridge to help ‘bridge the gap’ between funding and research. This will enable the National Breast Cancer Foundation to fund more breast cancer research projects to speed up the next breakthrough that will benefit the 15,934 women diagnosed each year1 and move closer towards the goal of Zero Deaths from breast cancer.
The event, held at BridgeClimb in Sydney, will see passionate breast cancer supporters grouped into teams of 10, with each team member raising a minimum of $1,000. Collectively, this will help to keep Australian breast cancer researchers on the road to discovery and stop deaths from breast cancer.
National Breast Cancer Foundation funded researcher Professor Sandra O’ Toole from the Garvan Institute for Medical Research knows all too well the challenges that breast cancer researchers face in the current Australian medical research funding landscape. Professor O’Toole’s research is driven by the issues she sees in her clinical job as a pathologist – to further understand the molecular changes in aggressive types of breast cancer to improve decision-making to ensure patients receive exactly the right treatment.
“In Australia, there is a limited research budget with many researchers competing for the same funding. This means a lot of high quality research simply doesn’t get funded. For a practitioner researcher like myself it can be even more difficult as you also must juggle a busy and demanding role as a doctor,” Professor O’Toole explained.
“I am also really saddened to see young researchers losing heart, giving up and moving out of research and fear we may lose the next generation of scientists who would have made important breakthroughs,” she continued.
Professor O’Toole, who is taking part in the fundraiser on 18 May, said that funding from the National Breast Cancer Foundation was fundamental to advancing her research and improving the treatment options available to Australians with breast cancer.
“For me, the support of the National Breast Cancer Foundaiton means that I can combine clinical work and research which I believe helps push research from the bench to the bedside. I have seen the difference that this support makes, keeping promising researchers working in science and undertaking innovative projects,” added Professor O’Toole.
Barbe Dolan, a valued member of the National Breast Cancer Foundation’s Speakers Network, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002 when her three children were in primary school. Following successful treatment she reached her fifth year without cancer and then found another lump in the same breast which was treated with further surgery and chemotherapy.
Barbe said that research was the key to unlocking the next ground-breaking discovery to help those affected by breast cancer like her.
“I’m so thankful for research, as the advances that have happened over the last 20 years, means that I can share my story, raise awareness and funds for the National Breast Cancer Foundation,” she said.
“Fundraising events like Bridge to Zero Deaths will help to progress more research so that the benefits of the research can be passed onto Australians affected just like me,” she continued.
National Breast Cancer Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Professor Sarah Hosking, encouraged corporates and the community to rally up their teams for Bridge to Zero Deaths and get ready for a once-in a-lifetime experience for life-changing breast cancer research at BridgeClimb.
“Research is the only way to prevent deaths from breast cancer and ensure that both women and men with the disease will live longer and better lives. We have come a long way but there is still much to be done to achieve our goal of Zero Deaths from breast cancer,” said Professor Hosking.
“As the National Breast Cancer Foundation is 100% community funded, donations, support and fundraising initiatives like Bridge to Zero Deaths are essential to drive the new ideas and innovations needed in breast cancer research while also enabling our researchers to continue their important work,” she continued.
WHAT: Bridge to Zero Deaths: Climb for breast cancer research
WHAT: 18 May, climbs commence from 8:30am (each climb will take approximately 2.5 hours)
HOW DOES IT WORK: Form a team of 10 (fundraising $1000 each) to achieve a min. total of $10,000 per team
WHERE: BridgeClimb: 3 Cumberland St, The Rocks
GET INVOLVED: Register Now on our website
For further information or to arrange a media interview, please contact Sophie Cooley, Senior Marketing Manager at the National Breast Cancer Foundation on 02 8098 4800/0417 421 683 or sophie.cooley@nbcf.org.au
You can download a copy of this media release here.
References
1 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2016. Australian Cancer Incidence and Mortality (ACIM) books: breast cancer. Canberra: AIHW. [Accessed January 2016].
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