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Komen CEO Nancy Brinker has again tried her hand at discussing the Planned Parenthood disaster with the media, but this time, rather than appearing live on-air, she's sent a letter in response to a blog post by the Washington Post's Sally Quinn. In her note, Brinker admits that she made mistakes in defunding Planned Parenthood but stops short of admitting she lied, or indicating that she's learned anything of value. It was nice of her to apologize, but this doesn't fix anything. More »
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Yesterday Karen Handel, the ink barely dry on her resignation from Susan G. Komen for the Cure, appeared on Megyn Kelly's Fox News show for her first post-quitting interview. She wants America to know that she didn't act alone in pushing for Planned Parenthood's defunding, that several members of the board colluded to back up her recommendation. The right wing political agenda of Komen wasn't Handel's at all, but Komen's. And with that, Karen Handel sums up why Susan G. Komen for the Cure is not an organization worth supporting. More »
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It's been a wild few days in the world of women's health. So what just happened? What's the lesson? Will there be a quiz? Here's an overview to help you track exactly how pink became the new blech. More »
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The story of the collapse of Susan G. Komen's brand among the young, mobilized and progressive isn't as much a story of one organization's downfall as it is another's gain. In the days since Komen announced they'd no longer be providing support to Planned Parenthood, the family planning provider has made out like a bandit, Komen's been left with egg on its face, and Komen supporters are just about universally mad and confused. Let's quantify this shitshow. More »
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A member of Susan G. Komen For The Cure's Medical Advisory Board has threatened to resign unless the charity reverses its decision to pull funding from Planned Parenthood. Looks Like we've got ourselves a Category 5 shitstorm in the forecast. More »
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You know who I don't envy right now? People responsible for Susan G. Komen for the Cure's public relations. Since the charity's transparently political and poorly received decision to defund Planned Parenthood, Komen supporters have not hesitated to express their displeasure. Just how giant is the pink, ribbon-shaped shit that the foundation has taken on its reputation? Let's find out. More »
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One in ten men are orally infected with the human papillomavirus, the nasty microscopic villain that can cause cancer of the genitals or throat. Because it's tough to test for the virus without a tissue sample and most of the infected don't know they have it, many don't think they're at risk for HPV-caused throat cancers until it's too late. Cancer is such a jerk. More »
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You'd think New York City's Department for the Aging would be sensitive to issues of illness and disability. But according to one former employee, it isn't — she says she was fired when she reported that her boss had been discriminated against for having cancer. Now she's suing the city. More »
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Here's a very sad story with an even sadder ending. Earlier this week, Darlene Gilkey, a 59-year-old woman with terminal cancer, watched as her husband, Paul Gilkey, fatally shot her son and her two sisters in front of her while she lay in a hospital bed in her living room. Apparently, there had been a dispute over whether Darlene should be served tea and toast or an orange, and her husband became so enraged that he shot the three people before also killing himself. More »
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Plenty of Barbie dolls have ended up bald after falling into the clutches of a nasty little brother, but now there's an online movement to have Mattel release a Barbie who's intentionally hairless. The hope is that the doll could make girls who've suffered hair loss due to cancer treatments, Alopecia or Trichotillomania feel less self-conscious, and teach other children that there's no reason to gawk at people who've lost their hair. There doesn't seem to be a down side to making the doll, but for some reason Mattel is resisting. More »
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Are you eating right now? If so, please stop before continuing to read. A UK mother of six has been credited with saving her own life after hacking up what turned out to be a fucking tumor. Holy shit. More »
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Young people with cancer have a lot to contend with, and one major issue is the potential effect of treatment on their fertility. But young female patients say doctors are failing to discuss potential fertility problems with them. More »
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After Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the president of Argentina, was recently diagnosed with thyroid cancer, Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's disturbingly kooky president, has begun insinuating that perhaps the United States is running around secretly infecting his region's leaders with the disease. His proof? Five Latin American presidents have recently suffered from cancer, a number which includes Mr. Chavez himself. He claims he's been cured of his disease, though he never disclosed what kind of cancer he had. (Probably the secret American kind!) Here's what Chavez said in a speech to the military on national TV: More »
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Just two months after her re-election to a second term, Argentina's popular president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, 58, has thyroid cancer. With early detection and treatment, the survival rate is high, and Kirchner's prognosis is good; the cancer hasn't metastasized or spread to her lymph nodes. She plans to step away for about three weeks starting next week. Her husband, former Argentine president Nestor Kirchner, passed away last year after a heart attack. More »
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It seems pretty obvious that unless you're part of a certain subculture that shall remain nameless, you'll be less likley to lay out in the sun or use a tanning bed after you've applied sunless tanning lotion. Of course, researchers needed to conduct a survey to confirm this, and while the results aren't earth shattering the discussion around it is pretty interesting. Apparently some doctors are hesitant to promote self-tanner as a method of reducing skin cancer, not because it's dangerous but because they feel that ideally women shouldn't want to change their skin color. More »
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Mouth and throat cancer have been making news lately because of their link to HPV. Now there's evidence that patients' level of education could affect their risk of dying from these diseases. More »
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What were you doing when you were 17? Playing video games with your friends? Smoking outside the back door of your high school? Well, unless you answered "curing cancer," prepare to feel like an underachiever compared to Angela Zhang. The impressive 17-year-old from Cupertino, California just won the $100,000 Grand Prize of the Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology for a project called, "Design of Image-guided, Photo-thermal Controlled Drug Releasing Multifunctional Nanosystem for the Treatment of Cancer Stem Cells." Not too shabby, right? More »
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Exactly one week ago, BoingBoing's Xeni Jardin live-tweeted her mammogram — and breast cancer diagnosis. Today, she has posted a more flesh-out and detailed version of events than her Twitter feed offered. Including the fact that, before the mammogram, More »
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Women around the world struggle with the moral and practical implications of the Catholic Church's opposition to birth control, and now researchers are arguing that the church should actually encourage some women to go on the Pill. Not because all women should be able to have control over their reproductive health, but because not having babies may be horribly detrimental to the health of nuns. More »
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Last week, Boing Boing editor Xeni Jardin live-tweeted her first mammogram — and same-day cancer diagnosis. A number of readers wanted to know if it was possible to be diagnosed with breast cancer so quickly. According to the experts we talked to, the answer is: not exactly. More »
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Xeni Jardian, the founding partner and co-editor of Boing Boing — who has contributed stories to NPR, Wired, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Guardian — embarked on a nerve-rattling journey yesterday as she went for her first mammogram. She took her more than 49,000 Twitter followers with her, as she live-tweeted the process, and her results. More »
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Researchers have discovered that women who regularly drink coffee may be less likely to develop cancer in the lining of their uterus. Possibly. But don't start drinking it if you aren't already! And definitely don't make it taste good. More »
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Researchers have found that countries that have the highest rate of contraceptive pill use also have the highest prostate cancer mortality rate. Everyone freak out! Lady whore pills are killing the men! More »
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It's been a few week since we've had an update on whether alcohol is extending your life or hastening your demise, so it's time for an update. A new study says that women who drink as little as one glass of wine a day increase their breast cancer risk by 1.2 times. Researchers believe alcohol might boost the level of hormones in the blood, increasing your chances of developing cancer, but they aren't really sure what's going on. Don't bother emptying out your wine rack, or you'll be rushing to the liquor store when researchers decide moderate drinking is healthy again. More »
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There's comforting news today for women whose relatives have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations: Despite the findings of a 2007 study, if you don't have the mutation, your risk of developing breast cancer isn't much higher than any other woman's. More »
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Earlier this month, Adele canceled all of her US tour dates. Now the UK shows have also been canceled. And a rumor has spread on Twitter that the singer has throat cancer. The hashtag #prayforadele has been trending, with fans stupidly spreading and perpetuating the cancer rumor. A rumor that has not been confirmed, at all. More »
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Hypochondriacs, anxiety-disordered peeps and the truly paranoid, be advised: If you've got a sinking feeling, specifically the sense that something terrible is about to happen, you could have one of eight illnesses or conditions. You knew it, right? Victory! (Of a sort.) More »
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We have plenty of problems in America, but currently nothing is tearing our nation asunder like the fight over using naughty phrases about boobies in the fight against breast cancer. The latest battle is taking place in an Arizona high school, where a pink shirt that reads "Feel for lumps — Save your bumps," is driving a wedge between administrators and teachers, parents and students, and most tragically, cheerleaders and their fellow cheerleaders. More »
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During the month of October, you can't watch, read, or buy anything without being made more aware of breast cancer. More »
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Today in depressing: a widely-used anti-miscarriage drug that didn't actually work has been found to cause breast cancer, infertility, and a whole mess of other problems in the daughters of women who used it while pregnant. The drug's crappy effects are so far reaching that researchers also suspect that it may cause reproductive health issues in the granddaughters of women who used it. More »
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Betsey Johnson has been breast cancer free now for "Eleven years," she proudly announced at a party at her SoHo boutique this weekend. "I tell you, it's kind of no big deal anymore, it's such a huge club." More »
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New research shows that throat cancers caused by HPV — usually contracted through oral sex — are on the rise. It's upsetting news, but there's something we can do: start testing the HPV vaccine for throat cancer prevention, and vaccinate boys. More »
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There may be a few people lingering out there still claiming that women are the weaker sex, but science has proved them wrong yet again. As if women's superhuman power to endure pain were not enough, now a new study has found that we also have superior immune systems when compared with men. It all boils down to X-chromosomes: More »
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The facts: Roughly half of adult males in the US are infected with HPV. Some strains, passed along to women through sexual contact, can cause cervical cancer. HPV can also increase the likelihood of penile or anal cancer in men, and can cause genital warts. The FDA has already approved the vaccine for boys. But the CDC is still deliberating over whether boys should get it. A significant decision in the process is expected at a meeting next month. More »
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October and the pink deluge that is Breast Cancer Awareness Month fast approaches, and with that will come constant reminders that women should get regular mammograms. Early detection is key! Prevention, prevention, prevention! More »
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At 18, Ruth Angelica Gomez has already come up with a way to make thousands of dollars and succeeded where many people twice her age have failed. that It's too bad that her plan was illegal and utterly dispicable. Much like the people who use fake breast cancer charities as a front to make themselves richer, Gomez allegedly collected $17,000 in donations after lying about suffering from leukemia. She made one huge mistake: Nine months ago, she announced she'd be dead in six months, and yet she's still here. More »
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There are few causes that are more widely supported than the effort to end breast cancer, yet somehow making sure your money actually goes to supporting research and helping people affected by the disease has become exeedingly difficult. You're probably aware that companies pushing products festooned with pink ribbons are often giving almost nothing to breast cancer charities. However, it isn't just the pink yogurt lids and Snuggies for the cure that you need to watch out for. The world of breast cancer fundraising is riddled with despicable people looking to make money off of your good intentions. More »
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Ovarian cancer is rare, but it often spreads without causing symptoms and is only detected once it's too late. Genetic testing can determine if a woman is likely to develop the disease, but a troubling study found that many doctors are suggesting the testing for women who don't really need it, while others fail to identify women who are at high risk. More »
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Though it's not quite as simple as talking away your risk of developing breast cancer, Andrea Farkas Patenaude of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute says increasing your "knowledge about the probabilities and options for managing the cancers," as well as working through your anxieties related to potentially developing cancer, could really help. More »
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As a tall-ish person, let me be the first to say "SERIOUSLY?" More »
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