“Pink October”: European Health Campaign against Breast Cancer
© photographies : Florian Launette / professeur Pascal Bonnier
- On: 07.10.2008
- In: Brussels, European Parliament
In 2006, 429 000 women in EU Member States were affected. In France, almost one woman in eight will have to deal with this disease at some time in her life; the latest figures report 11 000 deaths a year.
Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin, the French Minister of Health, Youth, Sport, and the Voluntary Sector, has chosen the European Parliament to spread this message.
An exhibition entitled “Cancer du sein, faites-vous dépister”, devoted to screening for breast cancer in Europe, will be opened at the European Parliament in Brussels on 7 October 2008 in the presence of MEPs and European Commissioners and other key figures; it will run until 16 October. The exhibition is part of the ‘Pink October’ worldwide public health campaign against breast cancer.
The exhibition is designed in two parts:
- On the facades of the Parliament building, over 500m2 of photos will present the faces of women who have overcome breast cancer, with the message “Cancer du sein, faites-vous dépister!” translated into the five official languages of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Attention will be drawn to the pink ribbon, the symbol of the fight against breast cancer, under the title “Pink October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month”.
- Inside the Parliament building, the exhibition will continue, presenting different messages about breast screening. Prepared in conjunction with the French National Cancer Institute, boards will present the various screening programmes under way, as well as the awareness campaigns being carried out by many Member States. Alternating between the poignant faces of women and scientific data on breast cancer, the exhibition will emphasise the need to step up efforts to increase screening rates in women aged between 50 and 70 and to develop coordinated programmes in this field.
Opening of the exhibition "Breast cancer – go for screening!" by Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin (Report)
Press programme:
Wednesday, 1 October 2008 at the French Ministry of Health, Youth, Sport and the Voluntary Sector
- 19:30: Illumination in pink of the French Ministry of Health, Youth, Sport and the Voluntary Sector;
- 20:00: Reception for female government ministers, doctors involved in the fight against cancer and some of the women who participated in the exhibition “Cancer du sein, faites-vous dépister !”, to open on 7 October at the European Parliament. (Group photo planned at the start of the reception.);
Tuesday 7 October 2008 at the European Parliament in Brussels:
- 16:15: photo session with Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin, the French Minister of Health, Youth, Sport and the Voluntary Sector, Hans-Gert Pöttering, the President of the European Parliament, Elisabeth Morin-Chantier, MEP, Professor Dominique Maraninchi, President of the French National Cancer Institute, Professor Pascal Bonnier and Florian Launette and numerous exceptional European women.
- 16:30: official opening of the exhibition “Cancer du sein, faites-vous dépister!”
- 17:15: press briefing
- Updated: 23.12.2008
