Olympic Gold Medal Gymnast and Boston Hometown Hero Aly Raisman Joined Avon Walkers at Reebok Headquarters on Saturday

Boston, May 18, 2014 – The 12th annual Avon Walk for Breast Cancer season continued in Boston this weekend, raising $3.9 million to accelerate breast cancer research; improve access to screening, diagnosis and treatment; and educate people about breast cancer.

The Avon Walk Boston – the third of eight 2014 Avon Walks across the country – attracted 1,700 participants from 35 states and Washington, D.C., as well as 2 counties. In addition, 220 breast cancer survivors and 287 men joined together to raise lifesaving funds for breast cancer.  On Saturday, Olympic Gold Medal Gymnast and Boston Hometown Hero Aly Raisman paid a special visit to the Walk’s “Wellness Village” at Reebok World Headquarters, where she signed autographs for participants, as well as their families and friends.

During the Closing Ceremony at the University of Massachusetts Boston, breast cancer survivor Peter Devereaux shared his journey of survival and what motivated him to participate in his first Avon Walk. “As an ex-Marine and past Golden Gloves boxer, I thought I was the toughest guy on earth, and the odds of seeing me in pink were close to zero. Then I found a cyst on my chest, which turned out to be stage 3B breast cancer. It changed my life forever,” Devereaux said. 

Eloise Caggiano, a breast cancer survivor and Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Program Director, announced eight new grants to local breast cancer organizations, ensuring the funds raised immediately benefit the local community. “These grants represent only a portion of the funding that the Avon Foundation will distribute in the Boston area and across the country this year, but we want to make sure the impact of your Walk begins today. Every grant moves us closer toward our goal of a world without breast cancer,” said Caggiano.

The New England organizations that received grants on stage include:

• Massachusetts General Hospital received a $500,000 grant to support the Avon Comprehensive Breast Cancer Care and Research Center, which is the hub of all research, education and clinical care activities for breast health at the hospital.
• Boston University  received a $300,000 grant to study if environmental chemicals cause changes to breast tumors, enabling them to spread from their original site to distant organs.
• Boston Medical Center received a $150,000 grant to help screen more than 17,000 women this year and provide navigation services to patients to remove barriers and coordinate access to care for prompt diagnosis.
• Silent Spring Institute received a $150,000 grant to continue research into the role of environmental chemicals in causing breast cancer.
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute received a $150,000 grant to help researchers employ a “big data” scientific approach to determine if viruses or bacteria play a role in breast cancer development.
• Community Servings, an organization that served lunch and snacks throughout the Avon Walk weekend, received a $100,000 grant to help provide meals for more than 540 clients fighting breast cancer and their families, ensuring that patients receive high-quality, nutritious meals when they need it the most.
• Cambridge Health Alliance received a $100,000 grant to provide navigation and support services for 3,500 underserved patients undergoing diagnostic testing or treatment for breast cancer.
• Tufts Medical Center received a $100,000 grant to help navigate nearly 60 newly diagnosed breast cancer patients from Boston’s Chinatown neighborhood through treatment.

About the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Boston 
The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Boston began on Saturday, May 17 at 6:30 a.m. with an inspirational opening ceremony at University of Massachusetts Boston. Participants then walked 26.2 miles through the Boston area, supported by an all-volunteer crew and cheered on by supporters, including Olympic Gold Medal Gymnast Aly Raisman. Walkers then spent Saturday night at the Walk’s “Wellness Village” at Reebok World Headquarters, featuring pink two-person tents, hot showers and meals, entertainment and volunteer medical services, as well as leisure activities such as yoga and a spa zone with mini-back and foot massages.

Get Involved with Avon Walks for Breast Cancer
The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Boston was the third of eight walks taking place around the country this year. Registration is open for the remaining 2014 Avon Walks in the following cities: Chicago (May 31- June 1), San Francisco (July 12-13), Santa Barbara (September 6-7), New York City (October 18-19) and Charlotte (October 25-26).

For more information on the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, visit www.avonwalk.org or call 888-541-WALK.  To learn more about the Avon Foundation for Women visitwww.avonfoundation.org.

REMEMBER, EARLY DETECTION HELPS SAVE LIVES. Get a mammogram. Know your breasts and report any changes to your doctor. Talk to your doctor about your risk. And encourage women around you to do the same. Don’t forget, men can get breast cancer, too.
For breast cancer information and resources, visit avonfoundation.org.

The Avon Walk thanks National Sponsor Reebok and ORION Trading.
Official Sponsor Cadillac, 
Local Sponsors Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Massachusetts General Hospital Emergency Medicine, 
Fallon Ambulance Service, Suffolk Downs, and Breakfast Sponsor Muffin Town