And For One Charity It’s Time to Dance
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a time for us to recognize and support those who have been diagnosed, are going through treatment or are in recovery. One in 8 American women will be diagnosed in their lifetime – and a quarter million women will join the ranks in 2018 alone.
The illness is an emotional, physical and financial burden for those it affects. The actual amount of money it ends up costing patients is staggering. Many women and their families will be drained of their entire savings to pay for care. And they are the lucky ones. For others, it can mean years of recovery time spent managing massive debt.
The Pink Fund, a charitable organization that provides financial support to women going through breast cancer treatment, recently conducted a study to understand the extent of what women are going through to pay for their treatment.
The study highlights the vast amounts of money women and their loved ones will have to pay to bring themselves through treatment. The majority incurred expenses upwards of $5,000. A quarter spent more than $10,000. And sadly enough, patients under the age of 40 are paying more out of pocket expenses than their elder counterparts.
Herein lies the one-two punch of being diagnosed with breast cancer. Just when health and recovery seem like priority number one, the medical bills start to roll in and that brings additional stress.
While hundreds of charities focus on research and a cure, The Pink Fund’s mission is to provide financial help to women while they are going through treatment so they can focus on getting better.
No one understands the hardship better that Founder Molly MacDonald, who nearly lost everything when she was diagnosed. Having experienced this financial toxicity herself, she has devoted her life to helping others so they don’t have to.
To date, The Pink Fund has distributed close to 1600 grants and $700,000. And tonight breast cancer survivors in Detroit will dance to raise even more money at the Pink Fund’s annual Dancing with the Survivor’s event.
So this October, when you’re trying to give a helping hand to those who are struggling with breast cancer, consider The Pink Fund. There are plenty of women who need your help. You can meet some of them at www.pinkfund.org
