News Archive
Gala Event Held in Support of Colon Cancer Awareness Month
March 16, 2010 – Earlier this month, the 4th Annual Unmasking Colon Cancer Ball took place in Charleston at the South Carolina Aquarium to launch the Colon Cancer Alliance’s national Dress in Blue campaign, raising awareness about colorectal cancer and the importance of screening.
“Each year this ball provides a huge boost to awareness, research and local screening programs, which provide free screening opportunities for hundreds across the Palmetto state,” said Dr. Frank Berger, director of the Center for Colon Cancer Research at the University of South Carolina.
Gastroenterologists Brenda Hoffman and Peter Cotton
took part in the evening's fashion event.
Ball participants came through with donations that netted over $70,000. Such generosity will have a direct impact on colon cancer reduction efforts in South Carolina during what we all know are very difficult economic times. Donated funds will be used in their entirety to support activities related to colorectal cancer awareness and screening, including free colonoscopy screening programs that mainly serve the state’s uninsured and medically underserved.
Drs. Peter Cotton and Brenda Hoffman, both gastroenterologists from MUSC, were just two of many participants in the fashion show portion of the event.
Early detection of colorectal cancer does save lives, as well as health care resources. In fact, early detection and intervention can reduce mortality from colorectal cancer by up to 90%. For normal risk individuals, it is recommended that a colonoscopy screening should occur every ten years beginning at age 50. For those at higher risk, or with a family history of colorectal cancer, testing should begin at 40 years of age or earlier.
The American Cancer Society estimates that almost 150,000 new cases of colorectal cancer were diagnosed in the United States in 2009 along with approximately another 50,000 deaths occurring. In South Carolina, the estimate was 2,150 new cases and about 780 deaths.