Komen race raises funds, awareness

Don your pink garb, lace up your running shoes and hit the pavement to help raise funds for breast cancer awareness and treatment at the 19th annual Komen Hawai‘i Race for the Cure on Sunday.

Cynthia Johnson, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, has been helping with the race for the past couple years.

"People helped me along the way, so I like to give back," she said.

Her treatment included a lumpectomy, chemotherapy, radiation and five years of medication.

The 69-year-old Hawaii Kai resident serves on the Susan G. Komen Hawaii board and helps with fundraising efforts.

"During the race, my husband and I organize and sell merchandise," she said.

Positive encouragement was one of the most important factors in her recovery, explained Johnson. "Supporting others on their journey is so rewarding to me."

The Susan G. Komen Foundation was established in 1982 after Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, that she’d do what it took to put an end to breast cancer.

Since its inception,nearly $2 billion has been invested in research, community health outreach, advocacy and programs in more than 50 countries.

Seventy-five percent of the proceeds from the race remains in Hawaii for breast cancer education, screening and treatment, and the rest supports Susan B. Komen for the Cure grant programs for cancer research.

Last year’s race saw 5,800 participants; organizers hope to match or exceed that number this year.

One of the grantees is Waikiki Health, which provides health care to low-income patients. The money assists the agency in "helping medically underserved women gain access to the services they need," said Beverly Hewett, grants and communications manager.

Waikiki Health’s patients include a 48-year-old homeless woman who found a lump in her breast and didn’t have the means to pay for treatment, Hewett said. The Komen funding helped the woman undergo a lumpectomy and make a full recovery.

This year’s Race for the Cure chairs are longtime sportscaster Jim Leahey and wife Toni, a retired high school English teacher. Both of the Leaheys have dealt with cancer: Jim was diagnosed with leukemia in 1997 and has been cancer-free for 14 years. Toni is undergoing treatment for breast cancer and has received a positive prognosis.

The race is quite emotional for many of the participants, Johnson said. Cancer survivors, family members, friends and other supporters unite to raise funds and celebrate.

"In the end, at the finish line, lots of tears are shed," she said. "We’re all in this fight together."