Each October, a disease that touches one in eight women over a lifetime moves from the margins of private suffering into the center of public life — a transformation that began with a single awareness week in 1985 and has grown into a global reckoning with mortality, survival, and solidarity. In Santa Clarita Valley, hospitals, nonprofits, and neighborhood restaurants alike are joining that reckoning this month, offering screenings, support, and small acts of generosity that collectively remind us how communities absorb and respond to shared vulnerability. The statistics are sobering — nearly
October Brings Breast Cancer Awareness Month to Santa Clarita Valley
Breast cancer affects approximately 1 in 8 women in the U.S. during their lifetime, with an estimated 42,680 deaths projected in 2025.
When caught early, the five-year survival rate reaches 99 percent.
Mark
So Breast Cancer Awareness Month is only forty years old? It feels like it's always been around.
Mimi
It started as just a week in 1985, actually. The American Cancer Society and a pharmaceutical company launched it together. It grew into the full month we know now.
Luke
Worth noting that the pharmaceutical angle—they made tamoxifen, a breast cancer drug. So the origins were partly commercial, even if the cause is real.
Mark
And the pink ribbon came later?
Mimi
Yes, the Susan G. Komen Foundation is credited with it in 1991, but it really took off in 1992 when SELF magazine and Estée Lauder did a huge campaign. Over a million ribbons distributed through makeup counters.
Luke
That's the moment it became a consumer symbol, essentially. Which isn't bad—it raised awareness—but it's worth understanding that the visual identity we all know is tied to a major corporate marketing push.
Mark
What do the numbers actually look like right now?
Mimi
The U.S. is expecting about 320,000 new cases this year, with roughly 43,000 deaths projected. But here's the hopeful part: if it's caught early, the five-year survival rate is 99 percent.
Mark
Ninety-nine percent?
Mimi
When it's localized, yes. And there are over four million survivors living in the country right now.
Luke
That's a real shift from even twenty years ago. Early detection and better treatments have made a measurable difference.
Mark
What's happening locally in Santa Clarita?
Mimi
Three major organizations are running October events. Henry Mayo has the Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center, which opened in 2003. Kaiser is doing Pink Day screenings on October 15. And Circle of Hope, a nonprofit from 2004, runs support groups and a calendar of events.
Mark
Why is the Veloz center named after someone?
Mimi
Sheila Veloz was a local philanthropist who died of breast cancer in 2001. The center was named in her honor.
Luke
So it's not just a clinical facility—it's a memorial to someone in the community. That matters for how people relate to it.
O Pulso
- With 319,750 new breast cancer cases projected in the U.S. for 2025 and 42,680 expected deaths, the urgency of early detection has never felt more concrete or more personal.
- The pink ribbon, born from a 1991 foundation campaign and amplified by a million ribbons distributed through Estée Lauder counters in 1992, has become both a symbol of solidarity and a call to action that now mobilizes entire communities each fall.
- Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital's Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center is intensifying outreach this October with podcasts, community visits, a Girl Talk seminar on October 9, and a support group on October 8 — turning awareness into accessible, local action.
- Kaiser Permanente Santa Clarita's Pink Day on October 15 offers walk-in mammograms, patient-voted display competitions, and educational exhibits, translating a month-long campaign into a single day of tangible, low-barrier screening.
- Circle of Hope Inc. and a constellation of local restaurants — from Rattler's Bar B Que to Salt Creek Grille's pink 'Sheila' martini — are weaving fundraising into everyday community life, demonstrating that awareness sustains itself through small, repeated gestures.
Each October, a disease that touches one in eight women over a lifetime moves from the margins of private suffering into the center of public life — a transformation that began with a single awareness week in 1985 and has grown into a global reckoning with mortality, survival, and solidarity. In Santa Clarita Valley, hospitals, nonprofits, and neighborhood restaurants alike are joining that reckoning this month, offering screenings, support, and small acts of generosity that collectively remind us how communities absorb and respond to shared vulnerability. The statistics are sobering — nearly 320,000 new diagnoses expected in the United States in 2025 — yet they are shadowed by a quieter, more hopeful number: more than four million survivors alive today, many because someone caught the disease early enough.
October's association with breast cancer awareness stretches back to 1985, when the American Cancer Society launched a modest week-long observance in partnership with a pharmaceutical manufacturer. That campaign grew steadily into the month-long global initiative recognized today. The pink ribbon arrived later — credited first to the Susan G. Komen Foundation in 1991, then propelled into mass consciousness in 1992 when SELF magazine editor Alexandra Penney and Estée Lauder's Evelyn Lauder placed it on a magazine cover and distributed over a million ribbons through makeup counters nationwide.
The scale of the disease behind the symbol remains staggering. The American Cancer Society and National Cancer Institute project roughly 319,750 new breast cancer diagnoses in the United States in 2025, alongside an estimated 42,680 deaths. Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the country outside of skin cancers, affecting approximately one in eight women over a lifetime. Yet survival tells a different story: more than four million survivors are living in the U.S. today, and when the disease is detected at its earliest stages, the five-year survival rate reaches 99 percent.
In Santa Clarita Valley, that statistical reality is being met with local action. The Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital — named for a community leader who died of breast cancer in 2001 — offers three-dimensional mammograms, genetic testing, and lifetime risk assessments. This October, the hospital foundation is hosting a Girl Talk seminar on October 9 and a support group on October 8, while also expanding outreach through podcasts and visits to community organizations. Kaiser Permanente Santa Clarita's Pink Day on October 15 invites walk-in mammograms alongside patient-voted team displays and educational exhibits, with the health system recommending screenings every 24 months for women ages 40 to 74.
Circle of Hope Inc., a nonprofit founded in 2004, rounds out the local response with free biweekly support groups and its annual 31 Days of Hope calendar. Several neighborhood restaurants are channeling a portion of their October proceeds to the Veloz Breast Center — among them Rattler's Bar B Que, Stonefire Grill, Copper Hill BBQ, and Salt Creek Grille, which is offering a pink martini called 'the Sheila' in the center's honor. Together, these efforts show how a month of awareness has become something more durable: a recurring, community-wide commitment to early detection, emotional support, and the quiet work of keeping people alive.
October has become synonymous with breast cancer awareness, a designation that traces back four decades to a single week in 1985. The American Cancer Society, working alongside a British pharmaceutical manufacturer of tamoxifen, launched what was meant to be a modest observance. The campaign expanded over time into the month-long initiative recognized today across the country and beyond. The visual identity most people associate with the cause—the pink ribbon—emerged later, credited initially to the Susan G. Komen Foundation in 1991, then amplified dramatically in 1992 when Alexandra Penney, editor of SELF magazine, and Evelyn Lauder of Estée Lauder orchestrated a major push. That campaign placed the ribbon on SELF's cover and distributed more than a million pink ribbons through Estée Lauder makeup counters, cementing the symbol in public consciousness.
The numbers behind the awareness campaign reflect a disease of enormous scale. In 2025, the American Cancer Society and National Cancer Institute project approximately 319,750 new breast cancer diagnoses in the United States—316,950 in women and 2,800 in men—with an estimated 42,680 deaths. Breast cancer remains the most frequently diagnosed cancer in the country, excluding skin cancers, affecting roughly one in eight women over the course of a lifetime. Yet the picture is not uniformly bleak. More than four million breast cancer survivors currently live in the United States, and survival rates have improved substantially. When the disease is caught in its earliest, localized stages, the five-year relative survival rate reaches 99 percent.
In Santa Clarita Valley, three major healthcare organizations are marking the month with screenings, educational events, and fundraising efforts. The Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center, located at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia, opened in 2003 and carries the name of a local philanthropist and community leader who died in 2001 after a prolonged battle with breast cancer. The center offers annual mammography screenings, high-risk genetic testing, and contemporary cancer treatments. Each patient receives a three-dimensional mammogram and a lifetime risk assessment. The facility has earned the American College of Radiology Designated Comprehensive Breast Imaging Center Medal. Marlee Lauffer, president of the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Foundation, noted that October represents a moment when the hospital intensifies its focus on both fundraising and public education. The foundation plans podcasts and in-person visits to community organizations to discuss the center's diagnostic technology, along with a Girl Talk seminar scheduled for October 9 featuring wine, appetizers, and information on breast health. A monthly support group will convene on October 8 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Henry Mayo Campus Education Center. The center operates Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with appointments available every other Saturday by advance request.
Kaiser Permanente Santa Clarita is hosting Pink Day events on October 15 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., offering walk-in mammogram screenings with educational exhibits and opportunities to speak with care team members. Patients receiving a mammogram in October will receive a complimentary tote bag. Kaiser's theme this year, "Step Up for Awareness," includes a friendly competition among teams who are designing and decorating displays, with patients voting for their favorites. Brian Y. Shin, chief of hematology and medical oncology at Kaiser Permanente, described the month as a reminder of the organization's commitment to early detection, advanced treatment, and compassionate care. The health system recommends mammograms every 24 months for women ages 40 to 74.
Circle of Hope Inc., a nonprofit established in 2004, provides emotional, educational, and financial assistance to Santa Clarita Valley residents with breast cancer and has since expanded to support people facing all forms of cancer. The organization offers free support groups open to everyone, meeting every other Tuesday at 7 p.m., with particular attention to the long-term effects of cancer treatment that persist years after recovery. Each October, Circle of Hope publishes the 31 Days of Hope calendar, which lists a range of events and fundraising opportunities. Several local businesses are participating in October fundraising for the Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center: Rattler's Bar B Que will donate 10 percent of proceeds on October 6, Stonefire Grill on October 7, and Copper Hill BBQ on October 27. Salt Creek Grille is offering a pink martini called "the Sheila," with a portion of proceeds going to the center. These efforts, taken together, reflect how a month of awareness has become woven into the fabric of local healthcare and community life.
Citações Notáveis
October is the month when there is an international focus on breast cancer. We have a calendar where we highlight our sponsors and how the community can help support the Sheila R. Veloz Breast Center.— Marlee Lauffer, president of the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Foundation
At Kaiser Permanente, Breast Cancer Awareness Month is a powerful reminder of our ongoing commitment to saving lives through early detection, advanced treatments, and compassionate care.— Brian Y. Shin, MD, MPH, chief of hematology and medical oncology, Kaiser Permanente
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