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Greta Smith North Beach, Western Australia Changing Gears Australia 2005 Experienced Rider

I am thrilled to be taking part in this year’s Changing Gears – The Global Run motorcycle adventure for young breast cancer survivors!

Over the course of this week we will raise awareness of breast cancer and in particular young survivors’ issues, raise funds for local breast cancer charities and build a supportive community with our fellow survivors.

It is truly the adventure of a lifetime and I can’t wait!

Statistics show:

• In the UK, one in nine women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lives. 40,000 women were diagnosed in the UK last year, 8,000 of whom were young women.

• In the U.S., one in seven women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lives. In 1975 the chances were one in eleven. There are approximately 250,000 women in the United States under the age of 45 living with breast cancer. In 2003 more than 11,000 young women were diagnosed with the disease.

• In Australia, one in eleven women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. Around 700 will be under the age of 40, and a further 2,000 between 10 and 49.

Young women affected by breast cancer experience unique needs and concerns related to their life stage:

• Young women with breast cancer experience greater unmet needs, more unhappiness and more financial stress than older women.
• Young women with breast cancer experience a high degree of social isolation through feeling "different" to their peers, and the unlikelihood of knowing any other women in their situation.
• Young women report that they are adversely impacted by negative and/or unrealistic portrayals of women with breast cancer in the media.

Your donation to support my participation in Changing Gears will help the thousands of women diagnosed with breast cancer each year access the support they need. Thank you for your generosity!

Australian Donors: Click Here to Donate Now!

U.S. Donors: Click Here to Donate Now!