According to the American Cancer Society, 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime — but breast cancer detected early in the localized stage has a 99% five-year survival rate. From the vantage of the nonprofit Keep A Breast Foundation, prevention is the cure, and there are many ways to educate and advocate.
After marking their 20th anniversary in 2020, the organization continues to elevate its multifaceted efforts to support young women and all people around the world with breast health education and more.
What is Keep A Breast Foundation?
Keep A Breast Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization on a mission “to empower young people around the world with breast health education and support.” They don’t just spread awareness of the disease; they also release approachable scientific content, offer grant money to survivors as well as to those who have been recently diagnosed, and provide a range of other resources.
Most recently, KAB has launched a self-check app that provides a helpful visual overview to guide individuals through a breast self-check and connects users who think they may have found a lump during their check with a telehealth medical professional.
Keep A Breast Foundation History
After her close friend was diagnosed with breast cancer, Keep A Breast co-founders Shaney Jo Darden and Mona Mukherjea-Gehrig wanted to show their support and bring more awareness to the disease through the use of progressive art.
In 2000, they debuted an art exhibition called “Keep A Breast” featuring plaster breast casts of professional snowboarders painted by artists to showcase the physical and emotional challenges of breast cancer. The show was a huge success and was reproduced internationally. On May 11th, 2005, KAB was officially formed, with a guiding mantra of “Art. Education. Awareness. Action.”
Since then, the organization further developed interactive education programs for teens and young adults, teaching them about the early warning signs of breast cancer, how to perform self-checks, and the emotional impact breast cancer can have on individuals.
How Does KAB Give Back?
Breast Health Education
Empowering young people by providing breast health education and support is just one way that KAB gives back to the community. KAB has also created four traveling interactive programs geared towards young people to educate and spread awareness.
Self Check App
KAB offers a self-check app and important breast health tool for everyone. The app directs women on when to perform self-exams, how to do it, and what to look for to help them detect early signs of breast cancer. The most exciting part about this revolutionary breast self-check app is that it can connect users who think they may have discovered something during their check with a telehealth medical professional. KAP has partnered with Carbon Health, a technology-enabled healthcare provider that combines smart technology with inviting clinics to make sure you get the answers when you need them.
The app also shares inspirational stories from survivors and additional breast health resources and information. The Keep A Breast app is available for free download on both the App Store and Google Play!
Give Back Grants
KAB also offers Give Back Grants for BIPOC women who were recently diagnosed with breast cancer and existing breast cancer victims to help them pay for medical bills (including doctors appointments and procedures), alternative medicine (such as massage therapy and homeopathy), financial support (such as rent and electric bills), and to begin their own business endeavors.
Inclusivity
KAB provides a variety of easy to understand health information on their website designed to help educate men, women, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
Keep a Breast Foundation’s Impact
As they mark and move forward from their 20th anniversary, Keep a Breast Foundation has a massive positive impact to celebrate. Just a few highlights of what the organization has accomplished:
- Awarded 16 Give Back Grants to support Black women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer in Tennessee.
- Held the Keep A Breast Nashville Collection in honor of the nonprofit’s 20th anniversary, displaying over 80 breast casts featuring local artists, musicians, breast cancer survivors, and more.
- Distributed 38,000 Check Yourself cards to help support self-examination.
- Provided 16,000 online education hours and 175 face to face education hours in 2020.
- 6,500 new downloads of the new Keep A Breast App
How to Support KAB
There are many ways you can get involved to show your support for KAB and other nonprofits. Here are a few great examples to connect with the cause.
Start Your Own Fundraiser
You can donate to KAB directly through their website, start your own fundraiser or participate in the #CheckYourSelfie social media campaign.
Participate in the #CheckYourSelfie Campaign
Participants can download the KAP Check Yourself App and post about it on social using the hashtag #CheckYourSelfie to help spread awareness.
Show Your Love
You can also simply purchase a piece from their “I love Boobies” campaign. All proceeds from sales support funding programs and campaigns to further the KAP mission.
Charitable Shopping
It’s easy to give back to Keep A Breast Foundation when you shop with Giving Assistant. The next time you shop at your favorite online stores, you can donate some or all of your cash back earnings to KAB or another great nonprofit.
What is Giving Assistant?
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Nonprofits who partner with Giving Assistant can more easily reach their fundraising goals by receiving these shopper donations.
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