Did you realize that Breast Cancer Awareness month is about to end? It was the month of October and it flew by!!!
To help raise awareness and to bring to light the fact that we have to be aware of this disease, not just in October but the rest of the year as well, I wanted to show you a few statistics on Breast Cancer just so that you are aware of how widespread and how horrible this disease is.
WORLDWIDE STATISTICS:
- In the year 2010, 1.5 million people around the world (male and female) were diagnosed with breast cancer
- Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide and has the highest death rate of any type of cancer among women.
- The UK and USA have one of the highest incidence rates (together with the rest of North America and Australia/New Zealand)
- Even though there is such a high incidence of breast cancer in Western societies, 89% of women diagnosed with breast cancer are still alive 5 years after their diagnosis, which is due to early detection and proper treatment
You can view your country’s statistics on the Worldwide Breast Cancer website in the form of an easy to read, convenient map. You will also see other interesting global facts about breast cancer on the site. In the meantime, since most of you are from the USA and Canada, here are some of the North American statistics.
AMERICAN STATISTICS
- Breast Cancer affects one in eight women and kills more women in the USA than any other type of cancer except lung cancer
- Your risk increases if you are: overweight, on hormone therapy (for menopause or otherwise), taking birth control pills, drinking alcohol, if you have your first child after the age of 35 or if you never have children.
- Symptoms of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in size or shape of the breast or discharge from a nipple
(the above facts from MedilinePlus)
CANADIAN STATISTICS
I reside in Canada, so I decided to check out the Canadian Cancer Society to see how prevalent breast cancer was in this country and I got this information from their website. If you visit the site there is a plethora of other information on breast cancer and all other types of cancer.
- Breast cancer is the most common cancer among Canadian women except for non-melanoma skin cancer.
- In this year (2011):
- An estimated 23,400 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 5,100 will die of it.
- An estimated 190 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 55 will die of it (that’s right people, it’s not just a women’s disease!)
- And daily this year:
- 64 Canadian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer every day.
- 14 Canadian women will die of breast cancer every day.
PALMER’S COCOA BUTTER
Now we have all heard about Palmer’s right? No?!
Have you been living under a rock all your life?! (joking).
Okay, let me educate you just in case you haven’t. Palmer’s has been the ultimate resource for minimizing stretch marks due to pregnancy for generations upon generations of women. The company was founded more than 160 years ago and was one of America’s first skin care companies and claim to be the experts in stretch mark care. The products from Palmer’s are known to be high quality natural products and are the “old reliable” of lotions.
The Palmer’s PINK Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Lotion for Stretch marks with exclusive BIO C-ELAST, Vitamin E, Collagen, Elastin & Shea Butter(which you see in the image & which is what you’re going to be looking for so that your money gets donated to the BCSC this weekend), is not greasy at all and has a gentle scent….and I’m not allergic to it. I guarantee this to you because as we speak I have it all over my hands and my … um….well…places I get stretch marks….ahem….and I can still type without my fingers slipping, the scent has not annoyed me at all (in fact it is quite pleasant and is taking me back in time to my first visit to Canada….but that’s another blog) and I’m not itching anywhere that I’ve put the lotion (other places…well….yet another blog).
Do I know if it really works to minimize stretch marks? No, because I haven’t used it personally for that reason. I did however have a home room teacher in high school that swore by Palmer’s and to this day swears by Palmer’s because she did not get stretch marks at all when she was pregnant due to copious amounts of lotion.
I also have a few friends who have used Palmer’s and most of them loved that it moisturized their skin amazingly but didn’t make them feel icky. With regards to their stretch marks, they had mixed reviews, some said it didn’t work, some said it did and some said it did for one pregnancy but not the other(s)….so I can’t really comment. I do know though, that when I get pregnant, like every other girl I know out there, I will be buying and applying copious amounts of Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Lotion to try to minimize my stretch marks.
In the meantime, I’m going to try the lotion sample that Palmer’s so graciously provided me with on my present stretch marks…no I’m still not telling you where they area….and I will let you know in future if it minimizes them at all…..then again, these stretch marks are a few decades old, so I’m not sure how well it will work on these particular ones.
In the end, yes, this blog is written at the end of October but that was because I wanted to stress that breast cancer is a disease we need to pay attention to all year round.
Also, I wanted to encourage you, if you haven’t already, to go out and buy a bottle or two of the Palmer’s PINK Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Lotion for Stretch Marks THIS WEEKEND so that you donate to an amazing cause. You should be able to find it at most food, drug and mass stores nationwide (Canada).
I’d love to know your thoughts on if Palmer’s worked for you!!! Please comment below
