Living Beyond Breast Cancer (LBBC), is a national 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
headquartered in
Bala Cynwyd
Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community and census-designated place in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania and borders the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Rou ...
, just outside
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Pennsylvania, in the United States.
LBBC works with women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and their caregivers throughout their experience of diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
Their goal to be a "
high-touch High-touch refers to the involvement of personal attention and service. In business, the term often refers to situations where trust between the customer and employed individual(s) is necessary. High-touch areas include: medicine, wealth management, ...
organization" that provides people with information and support of relevance to their personal experience of breast cancer.
The organization supports studies of health care that are sensitive to issues of ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and diagnosis.
History
Living Beyond Breast Cancer was founded in 1991 by radiation oncologist
Marisa Weiss Marisa C. Weiss is an American oncologist, living in Philadelphia, the founder and president of Breastcancer.org, which provides medical and personal information on breast health and breast cancer. She is also a founder and past president of the na ...
.
She is a past president of the organization.
Early on, Weiss ran the organization from her house, with the help of volunteers.
The organization's first executive director,
Jean A. Sachs was appointed in 1996.
She became
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization.
CEOs find roles in variou ...
of the organization in 2008. Under her direction, the organization's budget and staffing have substantially expanded from an initial budget of $100,000 per year to more than $5 million per year as of 2014.
Programs
With a staff of 18 as of 2015, and a large volunteer base who donate time and expertise, LBBC reaches out to more than 70,000 people in need of information and support each year.
They provide a wide range of programs and services. The organization's website (lbbc.org) offers comprehensive educational information. Information is kept up-to-date through the work of a national medical advisory board with sixty representatives.
The organization also operates a Breast Cancer Helpline (1-888-753-5222).
Volunteers in the organization's outreach program are often former patients themselves.
A small number of Cis B. Golder Quality of Life Grants are awarded to provide financial assistance and support services to people diagnosed with breast cancer in the Philadelphia area.
LBBC has actively supported studies of the experience of cancer in ethnic and racial minority groups and the development of materials for their use. Publications include ''Getting Connected: African-Americans Living Beyond Breast Cancer'' by
Patricia K. Bradley and ''Celebramos el Mañana: Latinas que Sobreviven el Cáncer del Seno / We Celebrate Tomorrow: Latinas Living Beyond Breast Cancer'' by
Aracely Rosales.
LBBC has also published ''Breast Cancer in Focus: Getting the Care You Need as a Lesbian, Gay or Bisexual Person'' (2015). It is particularly important for LGBT women to be aware of possible issues, both because lesbians have a higher risk of breast cancer, and because LGBT individuals and families may face discrimination.
LBBC works with populations of young women.
They have received funding from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the National public health institutes, national public health agency of the United States. It is a Federal agencies of the United States, United States federal agency under the United S ...
(CDC) to support needs assessment and outreach in this area.
They have partnered with the
Young Survival Coalition
Young Survival Coalition (YSC) is an international organization focusing on young adults diagnosed with breast cancer ages 40 and under. Founded in 1998 by three young women with breast cancer, YSC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit based in the United S ...
in organizing events such as "C4YW" (formerly the "Conference for Young Women Affected by Breast Cancer").
The organization is a member of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance, and organizes annual conferences specifically for
MBC patients and their caregivers.
In 2005, LBBC secured funding for the ''Silent Voices: Advanced (Metastatic) Breast Cancer Needs Assessment Survey'' (2006), an important first step in identifying concerns specific to women with Stage IV breast cancer.
In 2013–2014, LBBC carried out the first needs assessment of women diagnosed with
triple-negative breast cancer
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is any breast cancer that either lacks or shows low levels of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) overexpression and/or gene amplification (i.e ...
(TNBC). Approximately 10–20 percent of breast cancers are triple-negative, with a higher prevalence (30%) among African-American women. Young Hispanic women, premenopausal women, and women who test positive for the BRCA1 gene mutation, also have a higher prevalence of TNBC diagnosis.
The study found that TNBC-diagnosed women had a greater interest in finding diagnosis-specific resources.
It also found a greater degree of fear, anxiety, and worry among TNBC women than among those with other cancer diagnoses.
LBBC has collaborated with photographer
Jean Karotkin, to develop an online exhibition expanding on her book of photographs of cancer survivors, ''Body & Soul'' (2004). The book sought to "celebrate and chronicle the beauty, power and spirit of women affected by breast cancer."
LBBC has created a digital archive where Karotkin's portraits, and stories of the women she photographed, will be accessible to people from around the world.
Fundraising events
A signature fundraising event for Living Beyond Breast Cancer is its outdoor
yoga
Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...
event, held the third Sunday in May.
Yoga was chosen as the focus of the event because of medical research suggesting that yoga has a positive effect on the quality of life of cancer patients.
The event involves a one-hour yoga class held at the
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) is an List of art museums#North America, art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at ...
. This is followed by breakfast and a health and fitness information Expo for participants and supporters, featuring a variety of nonprofits and service organizations. It was first organized in 2002 by Jean Sachs and yoga instructor Jennifer Schelter.
In 2002, 100 attendees met in the rain. In 2015, the program attracted over 2,300 attendees in Philadelphia, as well as participants in other cities including
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
,
Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...
,
Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
and
Fort Myers
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...
. Known variously as "Yoga Unites for Living Beyond Breast Cancer", "Yoga 4 Living Beyond Breast Cancer;", and "Yoga on the Steps", the event was renamed "Reach & Raise" for 2016.
In support of the event, the City of Philadelphia has declared May 16, 2010, May 15, 2011, and other dates as "Living Beyond Breast Cancer Day" in Philadelphia.
Another regular fundraising event is the annual Butterfly Ball, during
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM), also referred to in the United States as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM), is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities every October to increase awaren ...
. A variety of researchers, health care providers and volunteers have been honored at the event. Recent honorees include researcher
Patricia K. Bradley,
diagnostic radiologist
Debbi Copit, and cancer awareness advocate Tyesha K. Love.
In 2005, LBBC partnered with
Goody
Goody, Goodies, or Goody's may refer to:
Brands
* Goody (brand), a brand of hair styling products owned by ACON Investments, LLC.
* Goody's Powder, a pain reliever sold primarily in the southern United States
* Goody's (restaurant), a fast food ...
in "Comfort Meets Cause," to expand public awareness about breast cancer and raise funds for breast cancer education. Goody sold special pink Goody hairbrushes, donating four percent of the proceeds to LBBC. Celebrities including
Salma Hayek
Salma Valgarma Hayek Pinault ( , ; ; born September 2, 1966) is a Mexican and American actress and film producer. She began her career in Mexico with starring roles in the telenovela ''Teresa (1989 TV series), Teresa'' (1989–1991) as well a ...
,
Kim Cattrall
Kim Victoria Cattrall (; born 21 August 1956) is a British, Canadian, and American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Samantha Jones on HBO's ''Sex and the City'' (1998–2004), for which she received five Primetime Emmy Award nominati ...
and
Kelly Ripa
Kelly Maria Ripa (; born October 2, 1970) is an American actress and talk show host. Since 2001, she has been the co-host of the syndicated morning talk show '' Live! with Kelly and Mark'' in various formats. Her co-hosts have included Regis ...
autographed hairbrushes for sale at auction, all proceeds of which were donated to LBBC.
Awards
Since 2005, LBBC has been in receipt of
Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator is a charity assessment organization that evaluates more than 230,000 charitable organizations based in the United States, operating as a 501(c)(3) organization. It provides insights into a nonprofit's financial stability, adh ...
's highest overall rating of four stars.
LBBC has consistently received Charity Navigator's highest 4-star ratings for sound fiscal management ("Financial Rating", since 2005) and accountability and transparency (since 2012).
Jean Sachs was named "Breast Cancer National Leader of the Year" for 2014 by ''Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine'' in recognition of her work with LBBC.
LBBC has received national recognition for the quality of its educational programs. ''Getting Connected'' won an Award for Excellence in Patient Education Materials from the
American Academy of Family Physicians
The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) was founded in 1947 to promote and maintain high-quality standards for family medicine, an offshoot of the classical general practitioner. It is headquartered in Leawood, Kansas.
AAFP is one of ...
.
References
External links
*{{Commonscatinline, Living Beyond Breast Cancer
Breast cancer organizations
Cancer fundraisers
Cancer charities in the United States
Medical and health organizations based in Pennsylvania
Organizations based in Philadelphia
Organizations established in 1991
Recurring events established in 2002
Breast cancer awareness