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One in nine will be diagnosed with breast cancer: sobering stats

THE ongoing search for a breast cancer cure is being carried by a new wave of fashion designers and bloggers who say the stats are too bad to ignore.

Designer Karen Walker gets behind Fashion Targets Breast Cancer

“Put it like this,’’ says fashion designer Karen Walker. “You go to dinner with eight girlfriends, there are nine of you, one of you will be diagnosed with breast cancer.”

It is a sobering fact indeed as one the designer has made to bring the message right back home.

Walker joins bloggers Sara Donaldson and Eleanor Pendleton and international ambassador George Kotsiopoulos to make this year’s Fashion Targets Breast Cancer campaign one of the ‘most wearable & sharable’.

The Garvan Institute of Medical Research’s Fashion Targets Breast Cancer (FTBC) 2015 fundraising campaign has kicked off with the exclusive t-shirt designed by Karen Walker available through online fashion retailer, The Iconic.

Supporting this year’s campaign as ambassadors are Australian digital influencers Sara Donaldson (Harper & Harley), Eleanor Pendleton (Gritty Pretty) and Neale Whittaker (editor-in-chief, Vogue Living). They join previously announced International Ambassador, George Kotsiopoulos, in raising awareness for the cause on a global scale.

American celebrity stylist George Kotsiopoulos is on board the FTBC train too
American celebrity stylist George Kotsiopoulos is on board the FTBC train too

This year’s ambition for the campaign is to drive the FTBC message further than ever before across digital and social media through its use of ambassadors, leveraging their circles of influence.

Sara, Eleanor and Karen will be encouraging to ‘style’ the FTBC t-shirt in their own individual way and share it with a selfie – making it the most ‘wearable and sharable’ campaign yet.

THE ICONIC, as the exclusive retail platform with over 5 million visits per month, is leading the digital and social drive to its fashion-savvy audience.

“More than 12,000 Australian are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and the earlier the cancer is detected, the better the outcome,’’ says celebrity stylist George Kotsiopoulos, known asa former E!’s Fashion Police panelist.

“The Garvan Institute is one of Australia’s largest cancer research groups and all funds raised from this t-shirt go towards hopefully one day eradicating this disease.”

Harper & Harley’s Sara Donaldson says cancer affects everyone.

“Almost everyone knows someone close to them that has been affected by breast cancer,” says Sara.

“It’s so important for us to do whatever we can to support the research that goes into this. I feel we’re really, really, really close to finding a solution.”

Blogger Sara Donalsdon is putting her support behind raising breast cancer awareness
Blogger Sara Donalsdon is putting her support behind raising breast cancer awareness

Ralph Lauren created FTBC in 1994 in memory of fashion editor Nina Hyde who died of breast cancer and the campaign has a presence in 14 countries around the world. it is also the fashion industry’s charity brand of choice.

In Australia, the campaign has raised more than $2.7 million for breast cancer research, focusing on women under the age of 40 years.

The Garvan Institute is a leading biomedical research institute, pioneering research into some of the major diseases affecting society (e.g. cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease,

immunological disorders and osteoporosis) and is home to one of the largest cancer research groups in Australia.

By aligning with Garvan, FTBC will be investing funds directly towards pioneering Australian breast cancer research including early onset breast cancer.

The Fashion Targets Breast Cancer T-shirt designed by Karen Walker will be available for purchase online from today at THE ICONIC: www.theiconic.com.au/FTBC for $50RRP.

The Facts:

• In Australian women, breast cancer is the most common cancer

• Breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related death after lung

cancer

• More than 12,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in Australia each year

• More than 2,600 will lose their life each year

• One in 9 Australian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer

• One in 37 will die from the disease by the age of 85 years

• Survival estimates for women under the age of 40 are significantly lower, which may be

due to more aggressive tumours and less response to treatment.

Everyone can get involved by spreading the word using @FTBC_au #WearYourSupport @THEICONICau and #theiconic on Instagram

For more about FTBC, you can visit: www.theiconic.com.au/FTBC

Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/one-in-nine-will-be-diagnosed-with-breast-cancer-sobering-stats/news-story/0c2622566a32119a4ee206f20437044c