By Michelle Burford
The NFL will tackle breast cancer this month by adding a dash of color
to its game -- players will wear pink cleats, wristbands and gloves.
Even the goal-post padding in the end zones will be pink. The move is
part of “A Crucial Catch: Annual Screening Saves Lives,” the NFL's campaign to encourage women to get yearly mammograms,
especially after the age of 40. Fans can take part in the crusade by
purchasing the players' apparel: The highest bidder can claim any one
of the pink accessories at a special auction hosted by the NFL; all
proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society (www.NFLAuction.NFL.com).
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month -- a time when we renew our
national fight against an illness that will claim more than 40,000
lives in 2009. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), one in
eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime, which
means every three minutes, a woman is diagnosed. It's the second
leading cause of death in women and the leading cause of death among
women between the ages of 40 and 59. ACS encourages women to begin
monthly breast self-exams at age 20. Between ages 20 and 40, it is
recommended that women receive a clinical breast exam every three
years. Starting at age 40, the organization advises women to schedule
an annual mammogram.
Since the NFL announced its push to score a touchdown for breast cancer research and awareness, Twitter
has been aflutter with shout-outs from the league's most supportive
players. Wide receiver Chad Ochocinco of the Cincinnati Bengals showed
off his fuschia-and-black cleats, while tight ender Kevin Boss of the
New York Giants left this note for his followers: “Excited to wear pink
gloves this week in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month! Pink
shoes the following week!” As it turns out, real men wear pink.
Click through the gallery below to see famous athletes who have beaten cancer.
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Celebrity Athlete Cancer Survivors
Josh Bidwell, 33, punter for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers
When he was just 23, Oregon native Josh Bidwell scored his boyhood dream when he became a fourth-round NFL draft pick and joined the Green Bay Packers. But his professional achievement was eclipsed by a personal nightmare: At training camp, he noticed a lump in his testicles that doctors diagnosed as aggressive testicular cancer. The tumor was removed, but the cancer had spread -- which meant that Bidwell needed chemotherapy. Yet after five rounds of chemo and a fight that threatened to end his career, Bidwell triumphed. The father of two suited up again in 2000 and even earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2005. Now a punter for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers, the player penned a book about his battle with cancer, When It's Fourth and Long.
When he was just 23, Oregon native Josh Bidwell scored his boyhood dream when he became a fourth-round NFL draft pick and joined the Green Bay Packers. But his professional achievement was eclipsed by a personal nightmare: At training camp, he noticed a lump in his testicles that doctors diagnosed as aggressive testicular cancer. The tumor was removed, but the cancer had spread -- which meant that Bidwell needed chemotherapy. Yet after five rounds of chemo and a fight that threatened to end his career, Bidwell triumphed. The father of two suited up again in 2000 and even earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2005. Now a punter for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers, the player penned a book about his battle with cancer, When It's Fourth and Long.
Reinhold Matay, AP
Celebrity Athletes who Fought Cancer
Josh Bidwell, 33, punter for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers
When he was just 23, Oregon native Josh Bidwell scored his boyhood dream when he became a fourth-round NFL draft pick and joined the Green Bay Packers. But his professional achievement was eclipsed by a personal nightmare: At training camp, he noticed a lump in his testicles that doctors diagnosed as aggressive testicular cancer. The tumor was removed, but the cancer had spread -- which meant that Bidwell needed chemotherapy. Yet after five rounds of chemo and a fight that threatened to end his career, Bidwell triumphed. The father of two suited up again in 2000 and even earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2005. Now a punter for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers, the player penned a book about his battle with cancer, When It's Fourth and Long.
Reinhold Matay, AP
Dorothy Hamill, 53, figure skater and Olympic gold medalist
In January 2008, Dorothy Hamill announced that she was in the showdown of her lifetime -- a battle with breast cancer. The skater, who grabbed the gold in the 1976 Olympics, was forced to slide away from her "Broadway on Ice" tour in order to receive treatment at The Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins. Hamill joins a list of other professional skaters who are overcoming cancer. Peggy Fleming, the 1968 Olympic gold medalist, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1998. Men's skating champion Scott Hamilton learned he had testicular cancer in 1997.
Jason DeCrow, AP
Lisa Leslie, 37, WNBA All-Star basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks
During her 11-year career in the WNBA, Lisa Leslie has had more blocks than any other player in her sport. Yet, it is her effort to end breast cancer that she'd most like to be remembered for. In 1999, Leslie's mother found two lumps in her breast. Though her mom's cancer turned out to be benign, Leslie nonetheless devoted her time away from the court to raising funds and awareness in support of the disease that could've stolen her mother's life. After she officially hung up her jersey in January 2009, Leslie committed even more time to traveling the country to encourage women to be vigilant about doing regular self-exams and scheduling breast-cancer screenings.
Juan Ocampo, NBAE / Getty Images
Darryl Strawberry, 47, baseball player and World Series champion
During his 17 years on the baseball field, legend batter Darryl Strawberry helped lead the New York Yankees to three World Series championships. However, in 1998, his homerun spree was cut short when he discovered he had colon cancer. Two days after the diagnosis, doctors removed a grapefruit-size tumor along with 24 inches of his colon. But the ordeal wasn't enough to keep Strawberry away from the batter's cage. A year after a spate of treatments he recovered enough to return to professional baseball. In the years since he left the game, Strawberry has become an outspoken advocate, urging Americans to get screened for colon cancer.
Jim McIsaac, Getty Images
Phil Mickelson, 39, PGA golf champion
Just weeks after Phil Mickelson received the news that his wife, Amy, had been diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2009, he sustained another blow. Phil's mother, Mary, also has the disease. Mickelson, who holds the number-two spot in the sport after Tiger Woods, temporarily put away his clubs to spend time with his family after he heard the diagnoses. "It has been a very emotional experience that has brought us closer together," Mickelson said in an interview on FOX & Friends last July. "This is just a speed bump… we've been fortunate to have so many great scientists, doctors and researchers who've brought breast cancer to where it is, so treatment today is so much better than where it was five years ago. We've been fortunate."
J. Pat Carter, AP
