The Breast Health and Healing Foundation To Convene Groundbreaking Breast Cancer Summit in Washington D.C. On October 9, 2009

Leading Researchers and Scientists Will Gather to Discuss the Latest Research Findings Including: Does a Virus Cause Breast Cancer In Women?

September 15, 2009 Belleville, New Jersey - The Breast Health and Healing Foundation, (BH&HF) www.breasthealthandhealing.com today announced it is collaborating with the Cary Medical Center to convene a Breast Cancer Summit in Washington D.C. on October 9, 2009. Cary Medical Center is participating in the project with the help of the Davis Family Foundation. The Summit will gather together leading researchers and scientists who are in the forefront of the fight to find the underlying causes of breast cancer. The Breast Health & Healing Foundation is organizing the Summit. Research findings and future announcements will be reported through the Pink Virus Project, an initiative of the Breast Health & Healing Foundation that will link research on the viral cause of human breast cancer to the public and the press.

The October 9, 2009 Summit will consist of two events.

From 11 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. organizers, sponsors, researchers, scientists, breast cancer survivors, media and other stakeholders will meet in the Senate Hearing Room in the Capitol building. Dr. Kathleen T. Ruddy, a breast cancer surgeon and founder of the Breast Health and Healing Foundation, will deliver opening remarks and set the agenda for the day. Following her remarks, select researchers and scientists will report on the progress of their research and plans for the future.

From 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. the Summit will reconvene at the Marriott Hotel located on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House.  Small break out groups will form, consisting of the scientists working together with the other participants, to help formulate the strategic plan for answering the question:  Does a virus cause breast cancer in women?  Strengths, opportunities, aspirations and results (SOAR) assessment of the Pink Virus Project will be done within these small groups; this will be followed by a large group discussion of the strategic plan and conclude with a synthesis of the day's work.  The second Breast Cancer Summit for the Pink Virus Project will be announced at this time.  Refreshments and the opportunity to share notes and network will be provided following the afternoon session.

"Everyday breast cancer claims the lives of scores of women around the globe. It's estimated that in 2009 more than 1.3 million women worldwide will contract the disease and tens of thousands will die from it. Despite tens of millions spent on research the epidemic continues to grow and grim statistics remain a reality," said Dr. Kathleen T. Ruddy. "Now is the time to marshal our resources, refine our approach, and direct our efforts towards finding the underlying cause of the disease."

About the Breast Health & Healing Foundation
The Breast Health & Healing Foundation is a 501(3)(c)tax exempt non-profit foundation. The mission of the Foundation is to discover the specific causes of breast cancer and to use that knowledge to prevent the disease.

About the Cary Medical Center
Cary Medical Center is 65-bed acute care hospital located in Caribou, Maine, and America's northeastern most City in the heart of the ‘County' Aroostook.  The hospital is also the site of a Veterans Administration Outpatient Clinic and the Maine Veterans Home and Residential Care Center.  Cary also manages a 9-bed ICFMR in Van Buren, Maine.  Cary Medical Center is a national leader in healthcare quality and patient safety and National winner of the 2009 HealthLeaders Media ‘Top Leadership Teams' small hospital division.  Dr. Kathleen Ruddy is Director of the Breast Health and Healing Service at Cary Medical Center.

About the Davis Family Foundation
The Davis Family Foundation is a public charitable foundation established by Phyllis C. Davis and H. Halsey Davis of Falmouth, Maine, to support educational, medical and cultural/arts organizations located primarily in Maine. The foundation was established following Mr. Davis's retirement as President and Chairman of Shaw's Supermarkets, Inc. Their overriding goal for the foundation was simple and straightforward: "to make grants where they will do the most good and where our gifts make a real difference." The foundation has provided over $37.3 million in grants since its grant making activities began in 1986 in support of Educational Organizations, Medical Organizations, and Cultural/Arts Organizations.

Contact:
Larry Dell, Breast Health and Healing Foundation 
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973-986-1433