Every October, we are inundated with information about Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We here at the Breast Cancer Fund [embed link: www.breastcancerfund.org] think that it is not enough to just be aware about breast cancer. We need to start preventing this disease!

Last week, we released our updated report, State of the Evidence, aggregating the scientific data linking environmental exposures to increased breast cancer risk. This is the sixth edition of the report and with each edition the evidence is stronger on why prevention is important.

Did you know that no more than 1 in 10 breast cancers are due to a genetic predisposition? With so much emphasis on genetics and breast cancer, it isn’t surprising if you didn’t know that. Much has also been made of individual lifestyle decisions such as diet, exercise and childbirth history, but all of these factors together still account for only about half of breast cancer cases. If all of the traditional risk factors can’t explain why 1 in 8 women are diagnosed with breast cancer, then what can?

Part of the answer has to do with what we are surrounded by in our everyday lives. Many of the consumer products in our homes contain chemicals linked to breast cancer. From cleaning products to food cans, from cosmetics to furniture, we are surrounded by chemicals that have been virtually unregulated. No wonder biomonitoring data has found many of these chemicals in our bodies, in our children’s bodies and even in the bodies of newborns. All of us have been contaminated without consent.

California is one of several states trying to do something about this problem.

The California Green Chemistry Initiative aims to minimize or eliminate the use of cancer-causing and other toxic chemicals in our everyday products. The program holds the promise of a day when we can go to the store and have confidence that the products we are buying are safe and healthy for our families.

Unfortunately, as the deadline approaches for the program to be fully implemented, the Schwarzenegger administration is starting to buckle under intense pressure from the chemical industry. Industry lobbyists have blanketed the capitol and have convinced the administration to add provisions to the program that would weaken its implementation and keep us mired in the status quo.

The only way to make sure this program protects our health is through pressure from people like you!

Please join the Breast Cancer Fund for a webinar briefing on Thursday, October 21 at 4:00 p.m. PT to learn about the connections between the environment and breast cancer and to hear more about California’s historic program to address this problem. We will discuss how you can make a difference to ensure that California leads the way in protecting the public from toxic chemicals!

Let’s use our voices this October to be more than aware of breast cancer. Let’s actually take action to prevent it!

For more information and to register, please visit http://www.breastcancerfund.org/events/find-an-event/webinar-breast-cancer-and.html.