Breast Cancer

July 13 NEWPORT BEACH - The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation's Orange County Race for the Cure starts on July 13 with a team captain kickoff at noon and again at 6 p.m. The team captain "fiesta" will cover how to start a team, goal setting, timelines, pledge prizes, registration information, award photos, tailgate parties and competition categories. Two new categories, mother-daughter(s) and sister-sister(s) have been added to this year's race, which is scheduled for Sept.

The 2007 Susan G. Komen Orange County Race for the Cure is scheduled for Sept. 23 in Fashion Island, and online registration is available until Sept. 19. Breast cancer survivors and activists will be part of the more than 35,000 participants the group is expecting to attend the 16th annual event. “The people of Orange County continue to demonstrate their overwhelming support for our promise to save lives and end breast cancer forever,” Race chairwoman Carla Cammack said in a written statement.

When Cindy Thomsen started a golf tournament at the Mesa Verde Country Club in 2003 to raise money for breast cancer research, the event brought in $30,000. Six years later, the event organized by Thomsen raised almost $250,000, beneficiaries announced Thursday. Participants played 18 holes on the Mesa Verde course, pausing to drink wine every couple of holes. There were silent and live auctions, which gave the event its name: Reds, Whites and Greens Charity Golf Classic. Three-fourths of funds raised are given to county hospitals and groups through grants to research and treat breast cancer, as well as educate people about it, according to Tami Thompson, the foundation’s director of development.

The Costa Mesa-based Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation of Orange County gave $1.3 million to local breast cancer support and research organizations at a breakfast Friday. Throughout the year, the foundation puts on events to raise funds — the biggest of which is the Race for the Cure, which took place at Fashion Island in September. Komen gives 75% of the money it raises to organizations within Orange County, and Friday’s breakfast was the culmination of their annual process of reviewing all the applications and deciding who gets the money.

Kathy Murphy, Mike Murphy, Peggy Hoyt and Norma Crosby, current and former employees of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, finished the Breast Cancer three-day, 60-mile walk in San Diego to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.     Gary Tolar was recently introduced as the new commodore at the annual meeting of the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club in Newport Beach. Tolar, who has been a member of the yacht club since 1999, was the port captain for one year and its power fleet captain for two years.

 The 7th annual Reds, Whites & Greens Charity Golf Classic was held recently at SeaCliff Country Club.  This upscale golf and wine event netted $162,721 for the Orange County Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, bringing the seven-year total to $885,000.  Cindy Thomsen, founder of the Reds, Whites & Greens is an avid golfer, wine enthusiast and two-time breast cancer survivor and decided to combine her passions for golf and wine in the fight against breast cancer.  This year’s event featured an on course around-the-world wine tasting, taking players to Australia, France, Italy, Argentina, Spain and of course, California, where they enjoyed three varietals from each country paired with hors d’oeuvres.

In 2003, Costa Mesa resident Cindy Thomsen celebrated the first anniversary of her victory over breast cancer by founding the Reds, Whites and Greens Charity Golf Classic to raise money for breast cancer research and education. The fifth annual tournament, July 23 at the Mesa Verde Country Club in Costa Mesa, raised $211,469 ? more than double what was raised last year ? for the Orange County affiliate of the Susan G. Komen for The Cure. Thomsen chose the local organization to be the sole beneficiary of all proceeds from the tournament because its mission "to eradicate breast cancer as a life-threatening disease by advancing research, education, screening and treatment" mirrored Thomsen's personal commitment to the cause.

The mystery of earwax production has been solved. Researchers at UC Irvine and in Japan have found that production is controlled by a gene linked to a rare movement disorder. This discovery may eventually help prevent breast cancer and excessive body odor. Dr. Hiroaki Tomita, a postdoctoral fellow at UCI's Department of Psychiatry, and his colleagues in Japan found that the gene that produces earwax was in the same area as the gene that produces a rare genetic disorder.

Sandy Finestone was there before the beginning of the Komen Orange County Race for the Cure — and there doesn't seem to be any end in sight. The Costa Mesa resident, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1983, was on the steering committee that organized the first race 14 years ago. Since then, Finestone has worked on every event and watched the race grow bigger — and more bountiful — with each passing year. "We had just over 3,000 attendees, and we thought we'd died and gone to heaven," said Finestone, recalling the first race in 1992.

Bryce Alderton Breast cancer survivors clad in pink hats and pink shirts waved their pink pom-poms while Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" played on the loudspeakers Sunday. Ara Ishkhanian looked over, smiled and said, "This is amazing. It's my first time being here. I've been looking forward to today." Ishkhanian joined about 36,150 others Sunday at Fashion Island in Newport Beach to celebrate the 10th annual Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation's Race For The Cure.