The American Cancer Society is looking for more people to lace up their walking shoes at Saturday’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event.
Breast cancer survivors, their caregivers and supporters will gather at the Wabash College football stadium for the annual fundraiser. Check-in begins at 8:30 a.m. with the walk stepping off at 10 a.m. The route is a three-mile loop around Crawfordsville weather permitting.
Walkers can also sign up or donate online at www.acsevents.org. More than $14,800 has been raised for research and prevention efforts so far, according to the cancer society.
Opening ceremonies begin at 9 a.m. with remarks from caregivers and community partners and a performance by a local cheerleading team.
“The caregivers are often the unsung heroes of the cancer journeys,” Kayla Halterman, American Cancer Society community development manager, said.
Cancer survivors will make their traditional lap in Knowling Fieldhouse to kick off the walk.
More than 3.8 million breast cancer survivors were living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, according to the cancer society.
An estimated 268,600 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed among women and about 2,670 cases will be diagnosed in men this year, statistics show.
The rate of invasive cases has slowly gained since 2004, the cancer society reports. Researchers link the rise to increases in body mass index and declines in the average number of births per woman, both risk factors for breast cancer.
Approximately 41,760 women and 500 men were expected to die from breast cancer this year, according to the data.
As of August, the cancer society had raised $67 million for breast cancer research nationwide. The cancer society funds 160 grants for the research.
