Sambolin joins Susan G. Komen for Hispanic Heritage Month and National Breast Cancer Awareness campaign

Zoraida Sambolin, co-anchor of CNN’s weekday news show “Early Start,”will join Susan G. Komen for Hispanic Heritage Month and National Breast Cancer Awareness  Month. She will participate in a nationwide, Spanish-language radio tour on Wednesday, October 9th.

In May of this year, Sambolin was diagnosed with breast cancer and shared that she would be undergoing a double mastectomy on CNN. “My biggest worry was how do I tell my kids, and how do I walk them through that process,” said Sambolin. “There are ways to be empowered.”

Sambolin, who is a native of Chicago and of Puerto Rican descent, will share important information about early detection, the disparities among Latino women, cultural barriers that impact diagnosis and treatment, breast cancer warning signs and the importance of screenings, steps Latino women can take to reduce their risk, Komen’s impact in the Latino community and her life as a breast cancer survivor. Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Hispanic women in the U.S.

“Zoraida is an inspiration to all of us, but especially for the Latina community” said Rhasheda Boyd, Director of Marketing for Susan G. Komen®. “Komen is honored that she is joining us to spread the message about early detection and create awareness about breast cancer.”

As part of its ongoing Hispanic outreach efforts, Komen launched www.soysusangkomen.org for Hispanic Heritage Month on Sept. 15th. It provides stories by breast cancer survivors and offers a variety of information about breast cancer health. Additionally, Komen has a Spanish-language website, www.lazosqueperduran.organd a Facebook page www.facebook.com/lazosqueperduran, which serves as an online forum for the community it serves.

Sambolin has participated in other Komen events. On September 20th, she was an emcee for “Honoring The Promise,” held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The fourth annual gala raised over $2 million for Komen’s breast cancer programs.

To date, Komen has invested more than $91 million to Latina-focused community programs and scientific research, including an $8 million research grant aimed at understanding genetics, societal and other issues affecting breast cancer incidence and mortality in Latinas.  In 2011, Komen launched an outreach initiative focusing on the Latina population called Lazos Que Perduran (Bonds That Last). The initiative is designed to reduce late-stage breast cancer diagnosis among Latinas. The goal is to empower young Latinas with life-saving breast cancer education, so they can learn their risk, get screened, know what is normal for them and make healthy lifestyle choices.

Internationally, Komen has been working in Central and South America since 2007.  Programs in such countries as Brazil, Costa Rica, Mexico and Panama focus on increasing breast cancer awareness and education at the community level. In partnership with The Caterpillar Foundation, Komen is sponsoring community projects focused on increasing breast cancer awareness with the goal of increasing access to preventive services and reducing mortality rates in Brazil, Mexico and Panama. Caterpillar has committed $5 million over 5 years to increase local capacity in the region.