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Smaller, Local Gatherings Mark This Year's 'More Than Pink' Walk Raising Awareness, Funds In Fight Against Breast Cancer

PASADENA (CBSLA) - This year's Susan G. Komen "More Thank Pink" Walk  to raise awareness and funds for the fight against breast cancer looks very different than the pre-pandemic walks of a few years ago.

"It's a walk in your neighborhood, a walk where you are," said Mark Pilon, executive director at Susan G. Komen For The Cure. "As a health agency, we didn't want to risk, especially with the new variants out...we didn't want to risk having a big get together."

Breast cancer survivor Jerri Johnson said that today's walks were still important for connecting people.

"We still needed to come together because part of what this event and this organization does is bring communities of people together and that connection is what is what helps us all continue to move forward and fight this disease," she said.

There are several walks across the southland, in LA County as well as in Orange County and the Inland Empire.

"There are so many people here that you can see that have been affected by breast cancer. We've all either gone through it or had somebody in our lives close to us that has fought breast cancer. We're also honoring some of our friends that were, unfortunately, lost too soon. It is hard to go through breast cancer during the best of times and COVID has certainly thrown some major challenges at people," said survivor Annette Crump at a walk in Anaheim.

Advocates said that one of the worries this year is that many women may not have been able to get early detection services as mammograms were considered elective procedures during the height the pandemic.

"Everybody needs to keep on their regular schedule, go get their regular get their treatment," one advocate said.

Organizers emphasized the fact that people can walk wherever they are, whenever they can to raise awareness for the cause.

 

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