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Health on Female First
Kelly Hoppen, Heidi Range and Leah Wood are just some of the celebrities who are helping to support a new campaign to urge mothers and daughters to check their breasts this Mother's Day.
Celebrities and women affected by breast cancer have been photographed with personal breast awareness messages for an early detection campaign by Breast Cancer Campaign.
The charity is launching the campaign following a survey undertaken by ICM Research that reveals that more than half of women in the UK, 51%, fail to check their breasts at least every month and almost three quarters of women, 72%, rarely or never discuss checking their breasts with friends or family.
Photographer Caroline True captured fashion designer Zandra Rhodes, interior designer Kelly Hoppen MBE, singer Heidi Range, comedienne Olivia Lee, DJ and model Leah Weller, actress and artist Leah Wood and DJ Krystal Roxx, alongside women who have gone through a diagnosis of breast cancer. They wear customised t-shirts with slogans encouraging women to be breast aware and check themselves.
Designer Kelly Hoppen said: “Breast Cancer Campaign is a cause very close to my heart- my mother and my friends have had breast cancer and I’ve had my own breast cancer scare so I’ve seen the devastating impact it has on women’s lives. Talk to the women in your life about checking yourself, you’re never too young or old to start, and if you notice a change, do something about it and book an appointment with your GP.”
The results from the ICM survey, conducted for Breast Cancer Campaign, reveal that too many women in the UK are not checking their breasts or do not know how to.
More than a third of women, 36%, said they were not confident they know how to check their breasts for cancer and 28% said they were not confident they would notice a change in their breasts.
Singer Heidi Range said: “Mother’s Day is a time to be grateful for our lovely mums and there are a lot of them out there who have been, or could be, affected by breast cancer. Let’s start checking our breasts regularly and talking to our mums about it to make sure they are too. Getting to know your body and noticing any changes could save your life.”
Breast Cancer Campaign’s Chief Executive, Baroness Delyth Morgan, whose sister has secondary breast cancer, and Nina Barough, Founder and Chief Executive of Walk the Walk and who has had breast cancer, also took part in the shoot along with Charlotte Pittuck and Emma Parlons, who both carry a mutated version of the BRCA2 gene and Keelin McCarthy, who is in remission.
DJ and model Leah Weller was photographed with her model boyfriend Tomo Kurata. Leah said: “Breast cancer is a disease that affects thousands of families across the UK every day, particularly mothers and daughters so don’t forget to check your breasts and ask your mum and any of the women in your life to do the same. We need to start looking after each another and being more breast aware.”
Breast Cancer Campaign supporter Charlotte Pittuck carries a mutated version of the BRCA2 breast cancer gene and is undergoing a double mastectomy this year.
Charlotte said: “As a mother I felt honoured to take part in the early detection shoot. An early diagnosis makes all the difference in treatment options available and ultimately survival rates. In cancers where an altered BRCA gene is present and the cancer attacks younger and more aggressively, as could happen with my gene, then early detection is our only hope. Any shoot that highlights this to people of all backgrounds and ages I want to be a part of.”
Baroness Delyth Morgan, Breast Cancer Campaign’s Chief Executive, said: “Forty years ago only half of women with breast cancer survived for more than five years after diagnosis in the UK. Now, that figure is more than 80% because breast cancer is being detected earlier, and with better and more personalised treatments the chances of survival have significantly increased.
“Checking your breasts and taking action as soon as you see a change is vital and could be the difference between life and death, so use this Mother’s Day to start having these conversations with family and friends. Around 12,000 women die from breast cancer every year in the UK and that is 12,000 too many.”
Visit breastcancercampaign.org/breastquiz to help understand the signs and symptoms of breast cancer and sign up to monthly breast check reminders - just a few minutes of your time can save your life.
Tagged in Breast Cancer Women's Health