BCAC Spring 2023 E Newsletter

Spring 2023

Spring is here and so is October – the pinkest month of the year!

Here are some of the events our member groups are running to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer this spring. Click the links below for further details and keep checking our homepage and following us on Facebook for more upcoming events:

Rotorua Breast Cancer Trust Pink Walk: 18 October Rotorua

Breast Cancer Research Trust Pink Walk and Run: 26 October Hamilton, 27 October Putaruru, 6 November Huntly

Breast Cancer Foundation Pink Ribbon Walks: 15 October Auckland, 29 October Christchurch

Sweet Louise Sweet October: host a tea party to raise funds and awareness for Metastatic Breast Cancer Day 13 October.

This Spring and all year round, BCAC continues to push for improvements in breast cancer care, to raise and comment on issues that affect New Zealanders with breast cancer, to send out our Step by Step support packs for those newly diagnosed, and to publicise our Metavivors NZ group for those with advanced breast cancer.

Please scroll down to see our latest news, and updates from our member groups.

My Life Matters campaign

With the tagline ‘You are one diagnosis away from moving to Australia’, My Life Matters aims to raise awareness, promote policy changes and engage politicians to ensure there is equitable access to essential medicines for all kiwis. BCAC and our members understand this struggle all too well; there are 18 breast cancer medicines recommended in international guidelines but not publicly funded here. Read more about the campaign here and here.

Treating advanced breast cancer in NZ - how do we match other countries?

BCAC Committee Member, Metavivor and medical writer Marion Barnett recently reviewed all the latest information on the treatment of advanced breast cancer in New Zealand and overseas, and discovered that access to modern medicines to treat advanced breast cancer remains alarmingly restricted for kiwi women. Read more here.

Breast Cancer Trials Q and A online sessions

Breast Cancer Trials is an Australia/New Zealand organisation that supports breast cancer research and runs online Q and A sessions with a panel of experts answering questions about various breast cancer topics. Past sessions have covered breast cancer and LGBTQI+, side effects, genetics, young women, recurrence, sex and indigenous women. You can watch these by following the links on BCAC’s webpage here. The next session will be on triple negative breast cancer - click here to learn more.

The Good Registry highlights breast cancer

We were thrilled to see The Good Registry featured a story about the difference their givers have made to NZ women with breast cancer, explaining how these donations help us to deliver Step by Step support packs throughout the country. Read more here.

The Pink Dragons are recruiting

BCAC member group The Pink Dragons are on the hunt for more paddlers from the Auckland region. A new dragon boat season is upon us, and this is a great sport for those recovering from breast cancer treatment. With the borders opening up worldwide, the opportunity to go global again is super exciting as well as lots of great regattas here in Aotearoa. Read more about this here.

Gold nanoparticles could make chemo work better

A proof-of-concept study has shown that gold nanoparticles could be engineered to target blood vessels in tumours, allowing chemotherapy drugs to penetrate more easily. Read more about this research here.

Unsubscribe