WASHINGTON (May 6, 2014) — The Avon Foundation announced a $100,000 grant to The George Washington University (GW) Cancer Institute at the 12th annual Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Washington, D.C.
Eloise Caggiano, a breast cancer survivor and Avon Walk for Breast Cancer program director, announced eight new grants to local breast cancer organizations, ensuring the funds raised immediately benefit the local community. “These grants represent only a portion of the funding that the Avon Foundation will distribute in the Washington, D.C. area and across the country this year, but we want to make sure the impact of your Walk begins today. Every grant moves us closer toward our goal of a world without breast cancer,” said Caggiano.
A $100,000 check was presented to Mandi Pratt-Chapman, M.A., director of the GW Cancer Institute, to support an Avon patient navigator. The patient navigator will remove barriers and coordinate access to care for prompt diagnosis, and assist with insurance access and resources for more than 1,000 patients.
“We are so pleased to continue our partnership with the Avon Foundation to help vulnerable patients obtain timely diagnosis and follow up care,” said Pratt-Chapman, principal investigator for the award. "Through Avon’s support, we are supporting patients at the local level and applying what we learn to develop standards for patient navigation regionally and nationally.”
The Avon Walk Washington, D.C. — the second of eight 2014 Avon Walks across the country — attracted 2,000 participants from 42 states and D.C., as well as Canada, Bulgaria and Puerto Rico. In addition, 260 breast cancer survivors and 285 men joined together to raise lifesaving funds for breast cancer.
