st7860
Jan 11th, 2008, 12:52 PM
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=6df727a6-f5bb-4707-9a2d-3e8857e67d1a&k=63113
A new website is encouraging young women to touch themselves and to post pictures of their breasts on the Internet - for a good cause, of course.
The Booby Wall, the latest initiative to raise awareness about breast cancer, was launched Thursday by the razor company Schick Canada, in support of the charity Rethink Breast Cancer.
The site, found at www.boobywall.ca, contains an online photo gallery of women's breasts and pushes the charity's TLC program, which encourages women to touch their breasts, look for changes, and to check with a doctor if they detect something unusual.
A screen grab from the website www.boobywall.ca, site of an breast cancer awareness campaign which encourages women to upload pictures of their breasts and write dedication messages.
More young women need to be breast-aware and need to be participating in checking their breasts," said MJ DeCoteau, executive director of Rethink. The Canadian charity prides itself on being bold and different and its new program is aimed primarily at women under 40.
Women get confused and intimidated and say they don't know how to do a self-examination, but there's no need to follow specific rules or use cumbersome pamphlets on how to conduct one, the charity says; the key message is to know your body. DeCoteau says there's also a sizeable "fear factor" among young women who avoid the self-test for fear of what they might find.
"You don't need a fancy routine," said DeCoteau, who lost her mother to the disease and whose grandmother also battled it. "Young women make excuses and we're saying there's no excuse, you can just touch your breasts, look at them and then check with your doctor if you notice anything different."
The site serves several purposes, said Helen Kargas, senior brand manager at Schick Canada. It's meant to educate women about the TLC program and to be a forum for women to celebrate their breasts and share their breast cancer experiences. In 2007, an estimated 22,300 Canadian women were diagnosed with breast cancer and 5,300 died from it.
"This campaign is attention-grabbing," said Kargas, "And I think it will cause women to stop and pause . . . and also get them to do the TLC program and pass it on to a friend."
Women can upload photos anonymously from their home computer but the new campaign also includes the Booby Booth. Equipped with a camera, the enclosed booth made its debut in Toronto last fall at L'Oreal Fashion Week and at the National Women's Show. It will be travelling to other consumer shows and events across Canada this year, with dates and locations to be announced. Women can enter the Booby Booth, perform a self-exam and take a photo of their breasts to post to the site.
Participants can pose with their shirt on or off, in a bra or completely bare and the photos show no faces, only below the neck and above the waist. Contributors can write comments or dedications to accompany their addition to the Booby Wall.
One photo in the online exhibit shows the chest of a woman who has had a mastectomy and when the image is scrolled over it reads, "I am a happy 12-year survivor." Other notes read: "RIP Nana, you fought the cancer best you could", "Doing something I would never do for breast cancer," "Be brave and have faith" and "I salute breast cancer survivors."
Rethink acknowledges the site may attract viewers who want a glimpse of bare breasts.
"Any time you're putting breasts on the Internet, that's automatically a concern but the whole thing is framed within a breast health message," said DeCoteau.
There are plenty of other places on the Internet where breasts can be seen, noted Kargas.
A new website is encouraging young women to touch themselves and to post pictures of their breasts on the Internet - for a good cause, of course.
The Booby Wall, the latest initiative to raise awareness about breast cancer, was launched Thursday by the razor company Schick Canada, in support of the charity Rethink Breast Cancer.
The site, found at www.boobywall.ca, contains an online photo gallery of women's breasts and pushes the charity's TLC program, which encourages women to touch their breasts, look for changes, and to check with a doctor if they detect something unusual.
A screen grab from the website www.boobywall.ca, site of an breast cancer awareness campaign which encourages women to upload pictures of their breasts and write dedication messages.
More young women need to be breast-aware and need to be participating in checking their breasts," said MJ DeCoteau, executive director of Rethink. The Canadian charity prides itself on being bold and different and its new program is aimed primarily at women under 40.
Women get confused and intimidated and say they don't know how to do a self-examination, but there's no need to follow specific rules or use cumbersome pamphlets on how to conduct one, the charity says; the key message is to know your body. DeCoteau says there's also a sizeable "fear factor" among young women who avoid the self-test for fear of what they might find.
"You don't need a fancy routine," said DeCoteau, who lost her mother to the disease and whose grandmother also battled it. "Young women make excuses and we're saying there's no excuse, you can just touch your breasts, look at them and then check with your doctor if you notice anything different."
The site serves several purposes, said Helen Kargas, senior brand manager at Schick Canada. It's meant to educate women about the TLC program and to be a forum for women to celebrate their breasts and share their breast cancer experiences. In 2007, an estimated 22,300 Canadian women were diagnosed with breast cancer and 5,300 died from it.
"This campaign is attention-grabbing," said Kargas, "And I think it will cause women to stop and pause . . . and also get them to do the TLC program and pass it on to a friend."
Women can upload photos anonymously from their home computer but the new campaign also includes the Booby Booth. Equipped with a camera, the enclosed booth made its debut in Toronto last fall at L'Oreal Fashion Week and at the National Women's Show. It will be travelling to other consumer shows and events across Canada this year, with dates and locations to be announced. Women can enter the Booby Booth, perform a self-exam and take a photo of their breasts to post to the site.
Participants can pose with their shirt on or off, in a bra or completely bare and the photos show no faces, only below the neck and above the waist. Contributors can write comments or dedications to accompany their addition to the Booby Wall.
One photo in the online exhibit shows the chest of a woman who has had a mastectomy and when the image is scrolled over it reads, "I am a happy 12-year survivor." Other notes read: "RIP Nana, you fought the cancer best you could", "Doing something I would never do for breast cancer," "Be brave and have faith" and "I salute breast cancer survivors."
Rethink acknowledges the site may attract viewers who want a glimpse of bare breasts.
"Any time you're putting breasts on the Internet, that's automatically a concern but the whole thing is framed within a breast health message," said DeCoteau.
There are plenty of other places on the Internet where breasts can be seen, noted Kargas.