Why I Won’t Race For the Cure (Susan G. Komen)

September 22nd is the Orange County Susan G. Komen “Race for the Cure” event. I’m sure they will rake in lots of money from good intentioned people who think their “hard earned” dollars are going to help a well known charity. I will not give them a single dime and here is why:

1. The charity founder, Nancy Brinker, according to her 2012 tax records, “raked in” over $600,00 of your donation money. Exactly why does she think she is entitled to that kind of salary? The donations given, are done so to help patients, not fund her wardrobe!  

2. Brinker decided to give herself a 64% raise while defunding Planned Parenthood, setting off a (temporary) firestorm — she has since earned the “most trusted” title  award — Americans sure do have a short memory! I won’t go in to the details  but if you like, you can read more here.

3. Dr. Judith Salerno, Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s new CEO and President told media that her salary will be less than Brinker’s, but stopped short of saying how much she will be paid. Brinker will step down to a management position, but also wouldn’t disclose what her new “adjusted” salary will be. I guess we have to wait for their IRS returns to find out.

4. In 2011, the Komen Foundation was accused of “over selling” mammograms. Dr. Steven Woloshin and Dr. Lisa Schwartz, two researchers with the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, argue that the breast cancer charity has oversold the potential benefits of mammograms and underrepresented the possible risks.

5. What money does go to research, a total of 15%,  goes to the PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES,  who patent their drugs to sell  back to the patient at outrageous prices! Believe me Big Pharma does not need our charity!

6. Do you listen to their ads? “A cure is just around the corner” — they have been just around that corner for years! News Flash! There is no corner because Big Pharma needs your money to keep their CEOs living the lavish lifestyle they have grown accustomed to.  The price of cancer drugs in the U.S. compared to other countries is beyond belief! It’s outright thievery! And to have the nerve to ask for donations on top of it???  Komen and other big name charities funnel money to pharmaceutical companies; its as plain and simple as that.

7. The same pharmaceutical companies who make the drugs to supposedly cure cancer, are the ones who give us cancer in the first place!  They have us coming and going! This is a HUGE money maker for them and their stock holders, and they have no intention of giving it up — like finding a cure. The only cancers that have improved over the last 50 years, are the blood cancers and maybe, testicular. The rest, as far as five year survival rate, are unchanged.

8. Do you know who thought up the idea of a “National Breast Cancer Awareness Month”? It’s the British chemical conglomerate called Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI), which became Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, and today is known as AstraZeneca. I’m sure you have heard their commercials lately.  AstraZeneca was the manufacturer of one of the largest selling breast cancer drugs in the world: Nolvadex (tamoxifen citrate) for twenty years. It stopped being manufactured or sold in the U.S. in 2006 because side effects included, uterine cancer and BREAST cancer and that’s the short list! They do, however, continue to sell a generic version.

9. Last year Kentucky Fried Chicken was one of Komen’s biggest sponsors. There’s nothing that says “fight cancer” like eating a big bucket of fried chicken that were fed genetically modified corn!

So before you feel guilt tripped into giving money to “race for the cure,” ask just where is the money going, better yet do your own research.

About Inge

Cancer survivor. Healthy organic food coach. Public speaker. If you have a story you want told, contact me at iscott.orangejuiceblog@gmail.com/