Since the inception of Breast Cancer Awareness initiatives in 1985, the American Cancer Society reports that over 517,000 lives have been saved due to improvements in treatment and proactive screening.
“Today is a day to celebrate forty years of incredible progress in ending cancer as we know it, for everyone,” stated Dr. Shanti Sivendran, senior vice president of cancer care support at the American Cancer Society and medical oncologist at Penn Medicine, during an interview with ABC News.
Looking back to the 1980s in the United States, only one in four women were receiving breast cancer screenings, with limited access to the necessary screening technology, Sivendran explained.
The landscape began to shift in October 1985 when the American Cancer Society collaborated with various organizations to launch a week-long event aimed at raising awareness about breast cancer.
This campaign quickly gained traction when more groups joined the effort, culminating in President George H. W. Bush issuing a proclamation in 1990 to officially designate October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
What began as a small group effort has transformed into a global movement, marked annually by millions who don pink ribbons, participate in awareness walks, and advocate for advances in both research and early detection.
“After 40 years of research, technology, and policy advancements, we’re now seeing that two out of three women are undergoing life-saving mammograms that are covered by their insurance,” Sivendran noted, emphasizing the significant 40% reduction in breast cancer mortality rates.
This improvement can be attributed largely to diligent screening and advancements in treatments that allow for more tailored options for patients.
The five-year survival rate for women diagnosed with breast cancer has seen a remarkable increase, rising from approximately 75% in the early 1980s to over 90% in recent years.
Researchers estimate that advances in screening account for about one-quarter of the decrease in breast cancer deaths, while improved treatments make up the remaining three-quarters.
Dr. Katherine Crew, a breast medical oncologist and director of the clinical breast cancer prevention program at Columbia University, Irving Medical Center, provided insights into the progress made.
“There have been great strides in breast cancer treatments, ranging from less extensive surgery to more targeted radiation therapies, as well as the emergence of new drugs that are more specific to the various subtypes of breast cancer,” Crew stated during her comments to ABC News.
Since 2000, more than two dozen drugs specifically for breast cancer have received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, many aimed at targeting specific biomarkers in tumors.
Experts have compared these markers to fingerprints that help physicians select the most effective treatments for individual patients, leading to a more precise and personalized approach to care than ever before.
However, the progress has not reached all communities equally.
As Crew pointed out, although improvements in breast cancer screening and treatment have enhanced survival rates, disparities persist — specifically, Black women experience higher breast cancer mortality rates compared to their White counterparts.
Currently, White women with breast cancer have a five-year survival rate of about 93%, whereas this figure drops to 84% for Black women.
For certain types of breast cancers, Black women face up to a 50% higher mortality risk than their White peers, highlighting the pressing need to address these healthcare disparities.
Sivendran emphasized that the last 40 years of Breast Cancer Awareness serve as a testament to how collective efforts can save lives.
Still, she insists that the work is far from complete and calls for continued action from the community.
“Go out there and take action. Get your screening mammogram, understand your risk, invest in cancer research,” she urged.
“Together, we will continue to make advances over the next 40 years.”
Noor Shaik, MD, PhD, is a neurology resident physician and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.
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