In life, there’s a lot worth fighting for.

There’s love, freedom, and truth.

And, importantly, there  are those special people worth the fight.  Those people who represent all those great things worth fighting for.  Those people who have found themselves fighting the unexpected and arduous journey that is breast cancer.

The month of October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, has come to serve as an invaluable time for education and advocacy in the fight against breast cancer.  Traditional fall colors have come to include various shades of pink, the color of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Since 1985, this long-standing awareness campaign has come to mean different things to different people.  Some celebrate survival.  Others remember lives lost.  CHRISTUS Spohn and FIRST FRIDAY are using the month to educate people about prevention, the realities of breast cancer and the fight that all of us can take part in.  They’re doing this by asking the community to pick from three pink links and become part of a chain that connects all of us.

 

 

What is FIRST FRIDAY?

FIRST FRIDAY is a grassroots organization whose purpose is to knockout breast cancer through education, self-breast examination, and free screening mammograms for those who have no financial resources.

 

They get their FIRST FRIDAY name after a reminder for women to do breast self-examinations on the first Friday of every month.

FIRST FRIDAY has made it their mission to reach out to the women of South Texas to educate them about the importance of early detection and self breast examination. Each year, the group provides about 1,000 free mammogram screenings.

CHRISTUS Spohn Health System has served as FIRST FRIDAY’s medical partner since the organization’s inception in 1994.  CHRISTUS Spohn’s Cancer Center is the Corpus Christi region’s only nationally accredited cancer program and administers FIRST FRIDAY’S free mammogram screening eligibility program.

How do the Pink Links Work?

By purchasing a link for five dollars, donors are helping to provide free mammograms to those South Texans for whom early detection would not otherwise be possible.  The links are connecting an entire community in a fight to prevent breast cancer deaths.

They can be purchased at  La Palmera Mall in Corpus Christi off South Padre Island Drive, CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Gift Shops or by visiting the below link:

FIRST FRIDAY Pink Links

The American Cancer Society recommends that women aged 40 and older should have an annual screening mammogram.   Annual mammograms have been proven to be critical for early breast cancer detection which improves the chances of successful treatment and survival.

Yet, not all women can afford their mammograms. That’s where CHRISTUS Spohn and FIRST FRIDAY step in.  They’re asking others to join in this special fight, join the link and the ever-growing pink chain now on display at La Palmera Mall.  By doing so, one can help connect South Texas women to a powerful early detection tool and save lives.