Race for the Cure Fact Sheet

Breast Cancer Facts

• †207,090 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed this year.
• 54,010 additional new cases of carcinoma in situ (earliest stage of breast cancer) will be diagnosed.†
• 39,840 women and men will die from breast cancer in the U.S. this year.
• Breast cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer in women (skin cancer is number 1) and the second leading cause of cancer death in women after lung cancer.
• One in eight women will be diagnosed with cancer in her lifetime and one in thirty-five women will die from breast cancer.
• One woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every three minutes and one woman dies from breast cancer every thirteen minutes.
• The biggest risk factors for getting breast cancer are being a woman and getting older.
• 80% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no previous family history.
• The overall five year survival rate for women with localized breast cancer (cancer has not spread to lymph nodes or other locations outside the breast) has increased from 74% in 1982 when Komen for the Cure was founded to 98% in 2009.

Breast Cancer in Chicago

• The state of Illinois has the 13th highest age adjusted rate for breast cancer mortality in the US.
• African Americans have the highest death rate from breast cancer of any racial/ethnic group in the US with a disparity of 35%. In the Chicagoland area served by the Komen Affiliate the disparity is even greater at 119%.

Where the Money Goes

• 75% of the funds raised by the Race for the Cure remain in Chicagoland where they are granted out to organizations that provide breast health education, screening, and treatment to underserved populations.
• 25% of the funds raised fund national research focused on identifying and delivering cures for breast cancer. Komen funded research has contributed to every major advance in breast cancer over the past 25 years.
• Susan G. Komen for the Cure has received the highest four star rating from Charity Navigator, the largest watchdog of charity organizations for 5 years in a row. www.charitynavigator.org
• A Harris poll states that Susan G. Komen for the Cure® as one of the most valuable and trusted nonprofit brands.