Efficacy of Breast-Cancer Promotions Challenged

All things pink fill the landscape come October, but some are questioning how much good comes from breast-cancer campaigns and merchandise supported by corporations, reports The Chicago Tribune.

Many companies create pink-colored products, but few reveal how much they donate to breast-cancer awareness or research. Some spend more on product marketing than they actually donate to breast-cancer charities. Case in point: 3M, the maker of Post-It notes, spent $500,000 promoting its effort to display a seven-story pink ribbon of notes in Times Square and gave $300,000 to charity.

Samantha King, a professor and author, points out that even though breast-cancer campaigns receive high visibility, over 40,000 Americans still die of the disease. Ms. King’s opinion article on the subject appears in The Chronicle of Philanthropy..

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