THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY AUGUST 19, 2008
MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 2008
NEWS
7A
Swimsuit calendar raises money for cancer research
FUNDRAISING
BY JOE PREINER
jpreiner@kansan.com
A swimsuit calendar is a new ally for breast cancer research this year.
Laura Woo Minn., sophomore, will be featured in the Big 12 swim-suit calendar produced by Campus Girls USA. The company, which started the calendar as a single-school pilot program in 2006, now
Laura Wood, Eden Prairie,
KU football games during the fall semester.
Breast cancer is currently the third leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. behind colon and lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society's 2008 Cancer Facts & Figures Report.
This year, according to the report, it is estimated that breast cancer will result in approximately 40,480 deaths and more than 180,000 new cases will be diagnosed.
done anything like this before." Wood said. "So it's great to be a part of something that is for such a great cause."
Wood said the goal of the program was to raise money for breast cancer research. Campus Girls USA raised more than $12,000 since the program began and this year,
The numbers are proportionately similar within the state of Kansas. The report estimates 370 breast cancer deaths and 1,730 new
cases for this year.
the company hopes to reach $120,000, according to its Web site. Wood said she hoped she could help the company achieve that goal and looked forward to contributing.
According to Campus Girls USA's Web site, there are two main strategies for fighting breast cancer. They included early detection and treatment and finding a cure through research.
"It's a great cause and one the girls can really get their arms around. Many of the girls have dealt with the disease on a personal level."
JIM DEBTH Senior VP of sales for Campus Girls
"I've never
Samantha, a political science major from the University of Iowa, is featured as Miss July in the Campus Girls USA calendar. The goal of the calendar is to raise $120,000 for breast cancer research this year.
features students from 65 colleges across the country.
The 16-month, $15 calendar is currently available for preorder online and includes the Big 12 football conference schedule and an NCAA March Madness bracket. Wood will sell the calendars on campus and during tailgating for
Roy Jensen, director of the University of Kansas Cancer Center, said funding for research was essential to finding a cure.
Erica Brown, senior coordinator of University relations at the KU Medical Center, said that in the past four years the National Cancer Institute lost 21 percent of its purchasing power because of rising costs within the biomedical field.
Jensen said the most important factor to advance breast cancer research was to increase funding so more money was available for researchers to discover new ways to detect and treat the disease.
Funding for research has become even more important in recent years.
Jim Debth, senior vice president of sales and business development for the Campus Girls USA, said the success of the program was a testament to the efforts of the girls involved.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
"It's a great cause and one the girls can really get their arms around," Debth said. "Many of the girls have dealt with the disease on a personal level, so they really look forward to the fundraising."
FUNDRAISING
Edited by Andy Greenhaw
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