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Welcome to United for Pink! This blog will raise support and awareness for breast cancer not only during October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but all year long.

This blog is for the survivors. This blog is for anyone who knows someone with breast cancer. This blog is for the caretakers, the researchers, the friends and families of anyone who has gone through this fight. From the newly diagnosed to those going through chemotherapy -- and for those who have won their battle, this blog is for anyone who wants to find a cure and knows we will find one.

United for Pink will keep you up to date with the latest breast cancer news, survivor stories, breast cancer events, interviews and more. We invite you to visit our message boards, where you can meet others and get support.

Everyone has a story to tell. We want to hear yours. To begin this month of awareness, take a moment to introduce yourself and share your breast cancer story with others. This message board is a great place to start.

I am so excited to be attending the AVON Walk Around the World for Breast Cancer for the second year in a row! I attended the event last year, not knowing exactly what to expect. I was deeply touched by each of the survivor's stories. I had the opportunity to speak to each of these ladies one by one, to really look into their eyes and hear their words. Of course this was the Walk Around the World event, so I won't say that there weren't language barriers – that just added to the message that this fighting breast cancer is a global fight. Thinking about breast cancer on a global scale makes you think about women all over the world. Are there social stigmas that will prevent them from getting the care and support that they need? What economic issues stand in their way?

These women took time out of their busy schedules to get their pictures taken. I asked each woman to write down a meaningful phrase on a pink piece of paper. Again, since this was a global event, the women even wrote down phrases in Japanese and Latvian depending on where they were from.

This year I plan to put together a similar photo gallery to honor these women and interview them so I can honor their journeys through breast cancer.

While I am gearing up for my trip this year, you can read my thoughts from my 'Think Pink' blog from last year and meet some of the survivors for yourself.

In addition to the 2006 Walk Around the World for Breast Cancer event, I got the opportunity to attend the actual AVON Walk for Breast Cancer. As I recap last year's walk, I look forward to the new stories of inspiration that will be achieved this year.

On Saturday, Oct. 7, I went to the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer race in New York City. The opening ceremonies began at the East River's South Street Seaport. It was a very chilly morning, but the chill in the air didn't seem to faze the thousands of women who huddled around talking and warming up before the race. There were tents set up for participants to grab a quick bite to eat before they began. At the entrance, a couple of huge inflatable walls stood towering high above the festivities. The men and women walked up to these towers and wrote messages for family and friends to inspire them on their journey.

I took a moment to read these messages. "I will walk for you no matter how far -- to find a cure. I love you, mom." "I miss you grandma -- Olivia" "Girlfriends 4 Life" People wore these messages on their shirts, their hats ... and you could tell just by looking at many of these men and women that they had someone special that they had lost on their minds. Each person was fighting for someone.

This year 3,500 walkers, volunteer crew members and breast cancer survivors from around the world raised $9.6 million for this event. The opening ceremony was breathtaking. A young New Yorker who was diagnosed at the age of 24 spoke to the crowd. She told her story and encouraged others to fight for a breast cancer cure. Music played in the background and a video was shown to inspire the women before the race.

The American Cancer Society presents Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, a non-competitive walk to help fight breast cancer. Have you or someone you know particapted in this event? Find a Making Strides event in your area.

What events are you planning on participating in this year? What past events have inspired you to continue attending these life changing occasions?

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, naturally there will be tons of breast cancer events. If you're not involved already, grab a friend and help support the cause.

Learn more about the Susan G. Komen foundation.

Find an event in your area during the month of October.

Meet Lynn Fitz. She's heading off to the AVON Walk for Breast Cancer with her team 'Feel Your Boobies.'

Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you are participating in the Avon Walk this year:

I am a 43 year old military wife blessed with good health. Two years ago, my sister and I did the 2005 SF Walk which was such an eye opening and life changing event for us, that we pledged to each other that we would try and do a walk every year to help raise money and awareness. We did LA Beaches in 2006. Our own family has been touched by several forms of cancer, including breast cancer, and walking is our small way of trying to help.

'Feel Your Boobies' is comprised of 2 walkers from the DC area, 2 crew members from the DC area and 2 walkers from California. How do you communicate and encourage your team along the way?

Mostly our team communicates through email. I'll send out positive emails to encourage our team along the way with their fundraising and training. Every month I also send out not only to the team members, but to everyone on my fundraising list an update on how the team is doing and how training is coming along.

What is the biggest challenge you've faced so far as you prepare for the race?

So far the biggest challenge (unfortunately) has been fundraising. The first 2 years, it seemed very easy. This year I think everyone is tightening their belts. With the team being spread apart as we are, we've not been able to do team group fundraising events, but, I'm confident we'll hit our goals.

What are you most looking forward to during the Avon Walk this year?

I can't really put a finger on why, I'm looking forward to Opening Ceremonies. I find the Opening Ceremonies heartfelt and moving. It has such an impact on us to see such a large group of people (in pink!!) come together for such a good cause. Also, I'm looking forward to seeing the team members from California. =)

How were you diagnosed? Breast self-exam

Do you know what stage of your breast cancer at the time of diagnosis? Stage II

When you were diagnosed, did you believe you had the opportunity to receive good medical care? Yes

Were there obstacles gaining access to medical care? No

Do you know family or friends with breast cancer? No

Did you tell family or friends, or did you keep your breast cancer diagnosis a secret? I told everybody, family, friends, colleagues and neighbors.

How did they react? Shocked, lost for words, some tried to comfort me and others narrated stories of other who survived.

How do you feel about participating in the Walk Around the World for Breast Cancer and the Avon Foundation event in NYC? I will do anything to make a difference in people's lives and to give others hope and courage.

Do you have any message for others who are facing breast cancer? We only live once. Go forth and do your best to receive treatment so that you can live a more meaningful life because it is like getting another chance to live again and this time it is even more worthwhile.

So, is wine good for us or not? By now you've heard tons of studies, and I have to admit I don't know what I'm supposed to be consuming anymore. Everything in moderation, I guess.

According to research led by led by Dr. Arthur Klatsky of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Oakland, Calif., more than 3 drinks could raise a drinker's risk by 30 percent.

I love wine and I know if I feel like having a drink, wine is the healthiest option for me. I'll take notice of this study, but I'll also continue to focus on the studies that sing the praises of wine's positive side effects.

Read more on this study here. Will you continue to have a glass of wine every so often?

This movie premiered on Lifetime last October and it's really worth mentioning again. Luckily, you can still go to the website and download the movie on iTunes and buy the book. http://www.whyiworelipstick.com/v2/home.html

I was looking forward to watching 'Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy' because I wanted to see how the film would balance the serious subject of breast cancer with humor. Clearly authors such as Geralyn Lucas are tired of breast cancer being a taboo subject. Humor is a great way to educate people about breast cancer and other causes, and 'Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy' creates that balance nicely.

There are some great scenes in the movie that really make the film work. These include Geralyn and her girlfriends taking pictures of themselves topless to show their strength and beauty as women, just as Geralyn's husband walks in on them. Another sincere yet lighthearted moment is when Geralyn tries on wigs in a salon with a bunch of encouraging drag queens. The whole film is very genuine, and you really feel for Geralyn throughout her journey from a perfectionist girl living out her dreams, to a sick and scared woman just struggling to get through the day. Your heart goes out to Geralyn as she is brought face to face with the fight of her life.

I was lucky enough to work with Kristina Collin last year. Kristina's survivor story is extremely inspirational as well. I think a lot of survivors can relate to her story and the fact that she's still "scared and paranoid, but also very happy." Thanks to Kristina Collins for this story.

Kristina Collin's Breast Cancer Survivor Story in Two Chapters

Chapter One (December 2002)

I found out I had breast cancer on the day I turned 31. December 18, 2001. My boyfriend (now husband) first felt the lump in March of 2001 and I immediately went to my gynecologist to check it out. I asked him "Can it be cancer?" He said that I was too young for breast cancer and to walk out of his office and not think about it again. I tried but I kept feeling it and feeling it.

Finally, eight months later when I pointed it out again he said "It got bigger." My heart sank. I went for an ultrasound and they really didn't see anything but recommended a mammogram. The radiologist that read the films came in to talk to me. He said it was a 50 percent chance it was cancer. I think it was more of a 90 percent chance but I guess he didn't want to tell me that. I went outside and called my mom and cried. I think I cried for two months straight. I was a mess. I had just moved two hours away from my friends and family to live with my boyfriend, now fiancé. I also had just started my new job and had only been there two weeks. It's one thing to be at your job and go through the motions but I had to try and learn a new position. It was impossible to think or learn anything.

Last year I worked with Jacki Donaldson on the AOL Breast Cancer site. I found her story really touching since Jacki was so young when she was so young when she was diagnosed. Thank you Jacki for telling your story.

Jacki Donaldson's Survivor Story
Danny was just 18 months old when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and Joey was four. There have been times during the past two years when I considered that my cancer journey might have been easier without small children. It would have allowed me a slower pace, afforded me opportunities for rest, and prevented worries about balancing childcare and treatment. My world would have been more quiet, more pampered, more me-centered – and terribly lonely. And so mostly, I thank my lucky stars that Danny and Joey have been with me on my wild ride. They have kept me busy, kept me distracted, and kept my eyes on the prize – my life.

Danny and Joey keep life simple. When Joey helped shave my head during my chemotherapy and I cried, he said, "Don't worry mommy, you're not going to die. It's only a haircut." And it was – only a haircut. My hair grew back and I now have a head full of dark curly hair. When I was wiped out with fatigue from chemotherapy and radiation and would doze off in the living room, Joey would later ask, "Did you have a good rest, Mommy?" He came to recognize the pink breast cancer ribbon at a passing glance and he still happily announces, "Mommy, there's cancer!" He called my port that pops up from underneath the skin on my collarbone a "stone" and his brother Danny thought everyone had one – he would look and feel for one on anyone who approached him at close range. And I think both boys believed at one time that all mommies go to bed bald and wake up with hair. My boys kept life simple – still keep life simple – and this is what makes me overwhelmingly thankful for the two small children who accompany me on my cancer journey.

My breast cancer journey began on November 23, 2004 with a phone call from the surgeon who performed my biopsy. He was sure the day before that the hard lump I found in my left breast was nothing to worry about – just like two other doctors believed – but when I heard his voice on the phone, I knew the gut feeling I had about this lump was about to be confirmed. And it was. It was breast cancer. I had breast cancer. At age 34, with a husband and two little boys, I became a statistic – I became one of the two million women living in the United States with breast cancer.

Cancer Go Away: 18 Ways to Survive

While looking for articles to promote on the AOL Think Pink blog, I've met some dependable partners who support raising breast cancer awareness and I met some new friends along the way. Dalene Entenmann was a blogger for The Cancer Blog and she had given me a lot of insight and interesting articles in the last couple months. Here is one of my favorite writing's of hers. Her words are so genuine, it's refreshing to hear such a down-to-earth point of view. Keep writing Dalene! You're an inspiration to us all!

Cancer Go Away: 18 ways to survive

Cancer go away.

The news is not good today. When someone is diagnosed with cancer, and there seem to be so many of us now, it does not diminish the initial response when you find out someone else has cancer. The news is still a shock to the spirit, a moment where the breath catches and pauses out of rythmn, and the heart drops into another pool of sadness. As a cancer survivor, you know what is to come for the newly diagnosed, not just the physical, but the mental, the emotional and the spiritual effects for the cancer patient and those who love them.

Cancer. I hate this disease.

I really encourage everyone to take part in the United for Pink message boards. There are a lot of active communities featured throughout this blog, and I'll be highlighting different conversations and topics each week.

Today I want to spotlight caregivers and the role they play in the fight against breast cancer. I found a really interesting post on this message board, where one woman is addressing the issue of caregiver burnout. As a caregiver, have you ever felt this way? Talk to others who are going through similar situations.