By now we are sure you’ve heard about the “Stomp Out BC” across social media. If you haven’t, you will certainly hear about it tomorrow!! This effort, initially launched by Beth Fairchild of North Carolina is looking to go viral on the first Monday of each month. Central to the effort is long-time METAvivor supporter Susanne Kraus-Dahlgren. The goal is to draw considerable attention to the present state of awareness and lack of funding for metastatic breast cancer.
Those #MBCAware patients and supporters on social media will certainly not miss the link between the “Stomp Out BC” and other awareness efforts. For example, the #MetsMonday hashtag was originally launched by Nancy Stordahl of nancyspoint.com. While #MetsMonday has crossed paths with the NY Mets, it has more importantly galvanized the breast cancer community in an effort to ensure that metastatic patients are not left behind.
Likewise, METAvivor’s 2012 awareness campaign “The Elephant in the Pink Room” was designed, with the support of Eisai, to draw attention to the often-forgotten metastatic patients who so frequently feel alienated from the “pink” conversation of breast cancer survival. Integral to that campaign was creation of the “Don’t Ignore Stage IV” phrase. As the only organization in the country that allocates 100% of our donations to funding peer-reviewed research, we are particularly excited to see our phrase as a hashtag in connection with this broader awareness effort. In fact, we are in the midst of our 2015 peer review now and are thrilled with the roughly 50 applications we have received and the promise of research they represent.
In the best way possible, we each build on the work of one another as we foster both community and awareness. Thanks to those taking the lead on “Stomp Out BC” for including METAvivor’s #DontIgnoreStageIV message as part of the campaign! We will see you online tomorrow.
