About the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Walk

Susan G. Komen died of breast cancer in 1980 at the age of 36. Her sister, Nancy Brinker, launched the foundation in 1982 after promising her older sister that she would try to raise public awareness of the disease. The Race for the Cure was created in 1983 to help raise money for the foundation. The first race--a 5km run and walk--was held in 1983 in Dallas, Texas, with approximately 800 runners and walkers. Since then it has expanded into an annual event held around the country.

The National Race for the Cure is held each year in June in Washington, D.C., but there are also about 120 affiliated walks held around the world. Participants are encouraged to either run or walk the 5km, or 3.1 mile, distance based on their fitness ability. It is the largest event of its kind, with almost 2 million runners and walkers participating in an event each year.

Registration for the national race is available online at www.nationalraceforthecure.org. Participants in the Race for the Cure are encouraged to collect pledges from friends, family or neighbors, although it is not required. After registration, the foundation provides fundraising tools to make the process easier, including email templates and personal fundraising webpages. The National Race, as well as many of the affiliated events, provide prizes for the top fundraisers. Pledges to the foundation are tax-deductible.

Since its inception, the Komen Race for the Cure has raised hundreds of millions of dollars to fund breast cancer research and advocacy. Twenty-five percent of the proceeds from each race go directly to the National Susan G. Komen Foundation to fund research grants and scientific conferences. The remaining 75 percent of the funds stay with the affiliate chapter to fund local projects, including health screenings and breast cancer education.

As the largest charity 5km in the world, the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure plays a significant role in raising money to find a cure for breast cancer and increasing public awareness of the disease. The money raised from the breast cancer walk has helped fund research and treatment projects. Komen-funded research has led to the discovery of a metastasis gene called MTDH that may lead to the eventual development of a drug to prevent breast cancer metastasis. In all, the Komen Foundation has devoted $53 million to research of breast cancer metastasis in addition to their other research, according to Marianne Alciati, Ph.D. Proceeds from the breast cancer walk go directly to help fund this kind of vital research.