This month the Estée Lauder Companies are marking the 30th anniversary of the Breast Cancer Campaign and have appointed four ambassadors to give a voice to under represented communities.
“This October marks 30 years since Evelyn H. Lauder co-created the Pink Ribbon and launched The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign (The Campaign) in 1992, starting a global movement around its mission to help create a breast cancer-free world for all. On the 30th Anniversary, The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation will donate $15 million over five years to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation to fund ground-breaking research addressing breast cancer disparities.
Whilst progress has been made, breast cancer continues to be the most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwide with an estimated 2.3 million new cases each year.2 Research commissioned by The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) UK & Ireland’s Breast Cancer Campaign has revealed nearly eight in ten (78%) women in the UK aren’t checking their breasts regularly and a third admit they never check themselves for signs of breast cancer.1 The new research findings demonstrate that more needs to be done to increase self-checking rates.
The study of 2,000 women in the UK (aged 18-80) reveals that self-checking rates are lowest amongst South Asian women (63%), women under 40 (69%), and Black women (76%). In addition, the research found that women do not regularly check their breasts for reasons including: forgetting to do so (35%), lacking confidence (17%) and a fear of what they might find (13%). It also shows over a fifth (22%) of women over the age of 50 are too busy to put their breast health first.
Sue Fox, President of The ELC UK & Ireland, said: “Our research shows there are still communities that feel under-represented and are not engaged in breast cancer campaigns, so it is more important than ever to increase the visibility of these under-represented groups. Our four new UK & Ireland Ambassadors will speak directly to these groups and empower everybody in their communities to self-check regularly.”
ELC UK and Ireland’s Breast Cancer Campaign has appointed four new Ambassadors to help spread awareness amongst under-represented communities on the importance of regular self-checking: Founder of Girl vs. Cancer Lauren Mahon, Founder of Black Women Rising Leanne Pero, Breast Cancer Warrior Kreena Dhiman, and GP Dr Zoe Williams.
To better understand the barriers these women face, ELC UK & Ireland’s Breast Cancer Campaign worked with the new Ambassadors to conduct a series of focus groups. The insights and corresponding research suggest cultural stigma is a key reason as to why self-checking rates are low in some communities.
In fact, 12% of South Asian and black women don’t self-check because they feel there is a stigma around acknowledging or speaking of the subject, and 10% are too embarrassed to self-check. What’s more, over a fifth (21%) of South Asian women said they fear their community or family would judge them if they found out they were regularly checking their breasts.
Kreena Dhiman, breast cancer warrior and UK & Ireland Ambassador for The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign, commented: “As South Asians, we find it uncomfortable to have conversations around breast cancer awareness because we rarely share our fears and vulnerabilities. Many of our families are immigrants who have seen real hardship in life. Despite that, as a community many South Asians have huge success stories and there’s a perception that a cancer diagnosis could disturb that. It doesn’t surprise me that 63% of South Asians are not self-checking regularly enough and that a fifth are not regularly self-checking due to lack of education from older female relatives. Breast cancer knowledge is not passed down in the family. Typically, we are a community that doesn’t share our fears, struggles or concerns. We need to change that behaviour so that everybody feels confident to own their breast health.”
A quarter (24%) of Black women said they don’t regularly self-check due to lack of education from older female relatives, with 14% not feeling comfortable touching their breasts.
Leanne Pero, founder of Black Women Rising and UK & Ireland Ambassador for The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign, said: “There is a lot of fear amongst Black women around breast cancer and we also wrongly believe that it only affects White middle-aged women. The data clearly shows that we are not feeling represented in awareness campaigns and that needs to change. I want to encourage all women, regardless of their age and ethnicity to prioritise their breast health and act if they suspect something isn’t right. I am living proof that you can survive breast cancer if you act early.”
The study shows there are also many misconceptions around who is at risk of breast cancer with half of women under the age of 40 thinking you can only get breast cancer in your 50s, and 46% thinking they are too ‘flat-chested’ to be affected.
Lauren Mahon, breast cancer survivor, founder of Girl vs. Cancer and UK & Ireland Ambassador for The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign, said: “It’s incredibly important for younger women to realise they’re not immune to breast cancer, and that it doesn’t just affect older women. For me, it’s vital that women understand that even those with small boobs, like me, are at risk of breast cancer too. I was only 31 when I was diagnosed with a grade 3 tumour, which I found by accident as I wasn’t self-examining at all. It’s terrifying that so many younger women say they don’t think breast cancer will affect them. This was me. But I can say first-hand that early diagnosis is so important.”
The research uncovered that representation is a key factor as to why women think breast cancer won’t affect them, with more than a quarter (27%) saying they never see anyone who looks like them in awareness campaigns. In addition, 26 per cent would like to see a year-round focus on the importance of breast cancer, and 22% would like to be reminded to check throughout the year.
The research also found over a quarter (27%) of women think men should be clued up and know the different signs of breast cancer so they can help spot it. What’s more, 30% agree that teaching young adults about the importance of self-checking should be compulsory within schools and universities.
Dr Zoe Williams, GP and broadcaster, and UK & Ireland Ambassador for The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign, said: “I want women to feel empowered to talk about breast health – it should be part of your self-care routine and there should be no shame as breasts are simply just part of our bodies. However, I understand that there are barriers to self-checking amongst many communities and that we need to be speaking directly to these groups so that everybody feels confident to regularly self-check. The research showed that of those women who do check their breasts, nearly a third (30%) are unaware of the signs and symptoms to look out for. It’s not just lumps, there are other signs, such as irritation or dimpling of the skin on the breast or flaky skin in the nipple area. If you notice any unusual changes, it’s important to contact your GP as soon as possible.”
Together, The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign and The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation (ELCCF) have funded more than $108 million (approx. £100 million) globally for lifesaving research, education and medical services, with more than $86 million (approx. £80 million), funding medical research grants through the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). Founded in 1993 by Evelyn H. Lauder, BCRF is dedicated to advancing the world’s most promising medical research.
Elizabeth Hurley, longstanding Global Ambassador for ELC’s Breast Cancer Campaign, said: “Evelyn H. Lauder co-created the Pink Ribbon and founded The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign as she recognised that women around the world were dying from breast cancer, and no one was talking about it. Ironically, it was around this same time that I had just lost my beloved grandmother to breast cancer – she put off going to the doctor for a year and never spoke about it. Now, three decades later, it’s encouraging to see that breast cancer is not the taboo it once was. More people are talking about it and awareness levels and access to information about breast cancer have significantly increased. But we still need to do more to improve self-checking rates as we know that early detection saves lives.”
ELC UK & Ireland’s Breast Cancer Campaign has partnered with Breast Cancer Now to create a self-check leaflet that illustrates the signs and symptoms to look out for when checking your breasts. It is available to download here.”
#TimeToEndBreastCancer
For more information about The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign please click here.
