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Faces of MBC Provides a Different Take on Breast Cancer

For every view of the Faces of MBC video, Genentech will donate $1 to breast cancer research programs to help fight metastatic breast cancer.

by Justin Goldsborough

Close your eyes for a second and lean your head back. Now imagine. Imagine you’re a mom with a lovely daughter and a son on the way in the next year. Imagine you’ve landed a great corporate job and are enjoying the success you’ve worked so hard for. Imagine you’re 35 years old. In the prime of your life. And while you’ve accomplished a lot, you still have so much to do. So many places to go.

Now imagine you’re in the doctor’s office. Something’s wrong, but you aren’t quite sure what. And then, imagine the doctor says the one thing you could never have prepared yourself for…

You only have a few months to live.

Sounds like a scene from a movie, right? Try an all-too-real-life scene that took place in Diane Bowley’s life 15 years ago. You see, Diane has metastatic breast cancer (MBC). And there’s no cure. The disease is terminal. And her doctor didn’t think she had much time.

Imagine you’re Diane and you hear this news. What would you do? Take your time. It’s not a decision anyone could make right away. Is it?

Well, Diane did. She made it right away. She walked into her way-too-many-hours-a-week corporate job and resigned. Diane had always loved flowers. So she opened up her own floral business. Flowers are often used to signify occasions in our lives, both happy and sad. Weddings, funerals, holidays, graduations.

Diane’s passion for flowers was no different. Her daughter’s wedding the doctor said she’d never see. The funeral they thought was months away that she’s avoided for 15 years and counting. All the holidays she’s been able to spend with her family over the past 15 years. Attending her son’s recent junior high graduation.

Close your eyes again and think about it one more time. Can you imagine being a 35-year-old mom, or anyone for that matter, with metastatic breast cancer? Now ask yourself another question: Can you imagine someone like Diane doing anything other than living for today?

Diane’s story is remarkable. And she’s not alone. There are more than 155,000 Faces of MBC who focus on making the most of every day while living with a terminal type of breast cancer for which there is currently no cure.

How can I help?

When you read a story like Diane’s, you want to help. And the Faces of MBC need your support. How can you help? It’s really easy. For every view of the Faces of MBC video above, Genentech will donate $1 to breast cancer research programs. In addition, below is a Facebook post and/or tweet you can share. For more information on metastatic breast cancer and the Faces of MBC, visit http://www.facesofmbc.org.

Suggested Tweet and Facebook Post

• Facebook: Most people know October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. But most people don’t know about the 155,000 people living with Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC), a specific type of breast cancer that currently has no cure. The women who have this disease know the diagnosis is terminal, yet they fully embrace the idea of living for today. Please watch the Faces of MBC video to learn more about their stories. For every view, Genentech will donate $1 to breast cancer research programs. Oct. 13 is MBC Awareness Day. Please help us spread the word. http://bit.ly/oGBZM8

• Twitter: @FacesofMBC is giving $1 to BC rsrch 4 each view of new metastatic #breastcancer video. Pls watch it here http://bit.ly/qi0y9A

Disclosure: Genentech is a client of Fleishman-Hillard Kansas City, where Justin currently works as a digital strategist.

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Avatar Brings the Environmental Message to the Masses

The run-away smash hit Avatar has changed the paradigms of special effects and 3D filmmaking. James Cameron’s script, while not critically acclaimed, has also achieved another notable achievement: Delivering a strong environmental message to the masses.

Cameron admitted in a Filmcast Interview that one of his primary goals was to push the climate change cause:

…if a film is successful and becomes a part of the zeitgeist, and there’s a feeling its good to believe this way, and its good to have a sense of responsibility, than people will still rail against it, but maybe it does create a little bit of movement. Our culture evolves through all of its various influences. And major films, major TV shows, celebrities, whatever.. If you hear it enough times, it does start to generate an interest.

Kudos to Cameron for doing his part to raise the issue. With more of us beating the drum, societal responses will hasten, and we can rise to meet the challenge of climate change.

I’m not going to play spoiler, but if you have an opportunity to catch Avatar, do so. And bring that friend who says, “Yeah, it’s an issue, but…”

Geoff Livingston is a regular contributor to the Live Earth blog.