Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition’s Traveling Photo Exhibit to visit Fox Chase Cancer Center

Philadelphia, PA –The Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition (PBCC) is bringing its traveling photo exhibit “67 Women, 67 Counties: Facing Breast Cancer in Pennsylvania” to Fox Chase Cancer Center, Cancer Prevention Pavilion , 333 Cottman Avenue, Philadelphia from June 9 – June 19.

The event will kick off with an opening reception on Thursday, June 9, 2005 at 7:00pm. The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public. To RSVP for the reception call 1-800-377-8828, extension 303.

Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, John M. Perzel, is scheduled to speak. “Last year, my wife Sheryl and I had the honor of serving as honorary committee chairmen of the Coalition’s exhibit at Nazareth Hospital, and I am honored to again be a part of this exhibition that encourages women to learn about early detection of breast cancer,” said Speaker Perzel. “The 67 Women – 67 Counties exhibit puts a human face to breast cancer, and celebrates the life, courage, hope and dignity of women and families who have battled this disease. The women featured in the photographs and stories are models for all of us, and their strength and courage is extraordinary.”

This powerful and educational work of art features at least one woman from each of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, along with a message about how breast cancer touched her life. The women reflect the diversity of Pennsylvania, and their stories reflect the impact of breast cancer on themselves, their families and their communities. The exhibit encourages women to learn about early detection and celebrates life, courage, hope and the dignity of women and families that have battled breast cancer.

Pat Halpin-Murphy, PBCC President and Founder, encourages everyone to visit the exhibit. “Breast cancer is not a rare event separate from the fabrics of our lives. It is our mothers, our daughters, our friends and ourselves. We must educate ourselves about this insidious disease and fight to find a cure now…so our daughters won’t have to.”

"The Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition has been an enormous advocacy force for the men and women of Pennsylvania whose lives have been forever changed because of breast cancer," said Robert C. Young, M.D., president of Fox Chase Cancer Center. "While many women survive this devastating disease, many others still die. We hope that the Commonwealth will continue to designate money to fund cancer research so that we can learn more about underlying mechanisms of all cancers."

“67 Women, 67 Counties: Facing Breast Cancer in Pennsylvania” is sponsored by the PBCC and funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, founded in 1993, is a non-profit organization and the only statewide grassroots organization that speaks to and for breast cancer survivors. This year, more than 12,000 Pennsylvania women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. More than 2,300 will lose their lives to the disease. The PBCC’s mission is to help find a cure for breast cancer and to improve the quality of breast cancer education, research and outreach in the state.