In the ongoing war on breast cancer, volunteer troops-lots of them-will be needed to help researchers discover the root causes of malignancy so it can be prevented before it starts.
That's the ambitious goal of Army of Women, an effort launched by cosmetics giant Avon and the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation late in 2008. Their aim: To recruit one million American women as a kind of ‘reservist unit’ that can be quickly called up to the fight by breast cancer prevention researchers who may need their help.
"Women have repeatedly demonstrated through fundraising and advocacy their personal dedication to ending this disease," breast cancer surgeon and activist Dr. Susan Love said in an Army of Women news release. “This new initiative gives women the opportunity to take the next steps and be part of the research itself,” said Love, who is also clinical professor of surgery at UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine and president of the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation.
Virtually any woman, healthy or not, who wishes to join and who is not undergoing breast cancer treatment can sign up to the project at www.armyofwomen.org. Women provide basic personal information on a confidential basis and confirm their willingness to participate in future research studies on a volunteer basis.
On the other side of the partnership, scientists engaged in research on breast cancer –prevention can submit their studies to Army of Women for scientific, ethical and safety review. Once a study passes such review, Army of Women volunteers are sent an email outlining the research. They can then decide whether or not they'd like to participate.
The process is designed to facilitate speedy connections between scientists and the volunteers who will be crucial to the success of research.
Indeed, information gleaned from thousands of healthy women may prove to be the key that unlocks the mystery of why breast tumors develop – and how to stop them, one researcher said.
"Getting tissue from women who have not yet been diagnosed with breast cancer will allow me to gain insight into what is causing these cancer cells to form in the first place," explained Dr. Thea Tlsty, a University of California, San Francisco breast cancer researcher who is partnering with Army of Women.
The project is quickly gathering momentum: Thanks to widespread media coverage since its launch in November 2008, by the end of January over 265,000 women had already heeded the call and joined the Army as new recruits.
The Army of Women is also collecting valuable partners in the worlds of science and entertainment. Respected cancer organizations, such as the American Association for Cancer Research and the National Breast Cancer Coalition, have recently joined the cause, as have celebrity spokeswomen such as Desperate Housewives stars Marcia Cross and Felicity Huffman, financial guru Suze Orman, and Olympic figure skating champions Emily and Sarah Hughes.
Much of the effort is being underwritten by cosmetics giant Avon Products, Inc. As Avon CEO and chairman Andrea Jung explained at the effort's launch, "The Army of Women is a perfect marriage of our global leadership in the breast cancer cause and our grassroots access to women across the country."
But it is individual women who will bring the most to this new Army. While she's donated money to breast cancer research in the past, volunteer Joan Young said that nothing she's done to date feels "as gratifying as being a part of breast cancer prevention research."
