FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 21, 2008

CONTACT: Dan Sweet
571-483-1355
dan.sweet@asco.org

Presscast Highlighting Studies on Screening, Targeted Therapies
and Disparities in Care to be held September 3

Alexandria, Va. – Researchers will discuss new findings on breast cancer screening, treatment and disparities in care during an embargoed presscast (press briefing via live webcast) on September 3, 2008, at 11:00 AM (EDT), in advance of the 2008 Breast Cancer Symposium. Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and advocates, is the primary supporter of the meeting.

The 2008 Breast Cancer Symposium, organized by six leading medical associations, will take place September 5-7, 2008, at the Hilton Washington in Washington, DC, and will feature at least 260 abstracts focusing on cancers of the breast.

In 2008, more than 182,000 women and about 1,900 men in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer; more than 40,000 people will die from the disease.

In conjunction with the Symposium, The ASCO Cancer Foundation will host a free public forum on breast cancer. The event will feature leading breast cancer experts discussing key issues and advances that affect patients, survivors, caregivers, friends, family and everyone who is concerned about breast cancer.

Studies to be highlighted in the presscast include:

• A study examining disparities in radiation therapy following surgery for early-stage breast cancer in black and white women, nationally and by region.
• A study evaluating whether access to radiation therapy is the leading factor contributing to higher mastectomy rates in rural areas, compared with urban areas.
• A study comparing a new screening technology, molecular breast imaging (MBI), with mammography for detecting breast cancer in women with dense breasts at increased risk for the disease.
• A study examining spontaneous changes in HER2 status among women who do not have a complete response to trastuzumab with chemotherapy before surgery

A working newsroom will be available at the meeting venue for reporters. Experts will be available for comment and perspective upon request.

Now in its second year, the 2008 Breast Cancer Symposium has expanded to a two-and-a-half-day multidisciplinary meeting to provide more feature presentations and educational sessions and to create a forum for in-depth discussion on cutting-edge research and its application to patient care. General session topics include (the full meeting program can be accessed at asco.org):

• Risk, Screening, and Prevention
• Angiogenesis and Insulin-like Growth Factor Receptor: New Targets in Breast Cancer
• Radiation: Basics and Beyond
• Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: What’s Positive?
• Selected Controversies in Pathology
• Self-Seeding
• Challenges in Survivorship
• Healthcare in Developing Countries
• Breast Cancer Therapy: Underserved Communities Around the World
• Multidisciplinary Implications of Preoperative Therapy

The 2008 Breast Cancer Symposium is co-sponsored by the American Society the American Society of Breast Disease, The American Society of Breast Surgeons, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, the National Consortium of Breast Centers, Inc. and the Society of Surgical Oncology.

Registration: To register to attend the meeting, visit www.asco.org/BCSpresskit08 or contact Kelly Powell at kelly.powell@asco.org or 571-483-1365.

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