History

Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Phoenix Affiliate
The Komen Phoenix Affiliate was started by three members of the Junior League of Phoenix (JLP) to honor their friend who lost her life to breast cancer.  In 1993, JLP and Banner Health partnered to bring the Race for the Cure® to Phoenix.  That first Race drew 1,500 participants and raised $65,000.  In 2010, we held the 18th Annual Komen Phoenix Race for the Cure® and raised $2 million! This signature event draws thousands of survivors and supporters together each year to celebrate breast cancer survivorship, to honor those who have lost their battle with the disease, and to help raise funds and awareness for the fight against breast cancer.

Since our beginnings in 1993, the Affiliate has raised and granted more than $18 million toward local education, screening and treatment programs and national research efforts.

About Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen fought breast cancer with her heart, body and soul. Throughout her diagnosis, treatments, and endless days in the hospital, she spent her time thinking of ways to make life better for other women battling breast cancer instead of worrying about her own situation. Moved by Susan’s compassion for others and commitment to making a difference, Nancy G. Brinker promised her sister that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer.

Though Susan lost her battle with the disease, her legacy lives on through the work of Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, the organization Nancy started in her honor. Komen for the Cure is the global leader of the breast cancer movement, having invested more than $1.9 billion since its inception in 1982. Komen’s promise is to save lives and end breast cancer forever by empowering people, ensuring quality care for all and energizing science to find the cures.

Across the country, that promise is upheld by a network of local Affiliate offices. At the heart of each Affiliate is a person or group of people who, like Susan, wanted to make a difference.