Charlotte, NC --- The 2007 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer season concluded with another record-breaking event this weekend as more than 1,050 participants took part in the third annual Avon Walk Charlotte, raising $2.3 million to advance access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer. At today’s Closing Ceremony at Memorial Stadium, Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Program Director Karen Borkowsky announced four initial grants, with additional funds slated to be awarded throughout the year. The initial grants are:

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) (Triangle Park, NC) will receive $530,000 for the expansion of the Avon-NIEHS partnership for the Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Centers, funding community advocate involvement and coordination of studies into the role of possible environmental and genetic factors and future risk of breast cancer.

Duke University (Durham, NC) will receive $250,000 to support expansion of Duke’s outreach to the African-American Community in Raleigh, Greensboro, and Charlotte and patient navigation services as needed. Funds will support key staff including a breast cancer physician, a patient navigator and a clinical assistant, as well as patient transportation and materials.

Medical University of South Carolina (Charleston, SC) will receive $250,000 to continue the Avon-MUSC Patient Navigation Program, which was established through Avon Foundation funding in 2005. The program has navigated several hundred medically underserved women in need of breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. New funds will support key staff including Nurse Manager, Patient Navigator, Patient Care Coordinator and provide funds for patient transportation.

Presbyterian Hospital (Charlotte, NC) will receive $150,000 to expand community outreach and patient navigation services to better reach underserved communities in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and eleven surrounding counties. These funds will help increase community outreach events and education programs, increase free mammograms by 25% and increase free diagnostics and follow up by 100%.

About the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer
During the Avon Walk Charlotte, walkers had a choice of walking a marathon (26.2 miles) or a marathon and a half (39.3 miles) over the weekend. The event kicked off early in the morning of Saturday, October 20, with an inspiring Opening Ceremony at Memorial Stadium, which included an immediate reminder of the impact of breast cancer through the remarks of two-time breast cancer survivor Candy Dullaghan, 60, of Holden Beach, NC.

Dullaghan was first diagnosed with stage II breast cancer in 2001. She thought her fight against the disease was behind her after chemotherapy with radiation, until this March when she was again diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo a double mastectomy and reconstruction. Her last chemotherapy session was on September 14, 2007.

“After six years, I thought I was safe. Guess what? No man or woman is safe from this disease,” Dullaghan said. She walks to raise awareness about the importance of early detection adding, “What saved me was early detection – a spot on my mammogram.”

Following the Opening Ceremony, walkers began their journey and were supported by a volunteer crew every step of the way, buoyed by cheering stations of friends, family, supporters and local residents. After completing the first day of walking, encompassing either a marathon or half marathon, participants spent Saturday night in two-person tents in the Avon Walk “Wellness Village” at Park Road Park, complete with hot showers, prepared meals and live entertainment. On Sunday, October 21, walkers completed another half marathon (13.1 miles), ending back at Memorial Stadium where they were greeted by hundreds of family and friends who shared in a celebratory and moving Closing Ceremony.

To participate in the Avon Walk Charlotte, each walker raised a minimum of $1,800 in donations, which is managed and disbursed by the Avon Foundation [a 501(c)(3) public charity]. Funds raised by participants of the Avon Walks are awarded to local, regional and national breast cancer organizations to support five areas of the breast cancer cause, including awareness and education, screening and diagnosis, access to treatment, support services, and scientific research, all with a focus on the medically underserved.

The 2007 Avon Walks raised more than $45 million. Donations are still being accepted for the Avon Walk Charlotte and registration is open for the upcoming 2008 Avon Walk series.

The 2008 series kicks off in the newest city, Houston, on April 12-13 and once again will be held in Charlotte; Washington, DC; Boston; Chicago; Rocky Mountains; San Francisco; Los Angeles; and New York.

Since 2003, the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series raised more than $175 million. To register, donate or for additional information, please visit www.avonwalk.org or call 888-540-WALK.

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The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer thanks National Sponsor: Prevention Magazine; Official Sponsors: Airplus for her, Genentech BioOncology, Novartis Oncology and Reebok; and Official Water: FIJI.

Remember: early detection can help save lives. Schedule your mammogram or clinical breast exam today. For more breast cancer information and resources, visit www.cancer.org (keyword breast cancer) or www.avonfoundation.org, where you can access free printable breast cancer informational literature.