If you’ve been in the hereditary cancer space for a while, you may be familiar with Bright Pink. Established in 2007, the organization emerged from Lindsay Avner’s journey with a BRCA genetic mutation, putting her at high risk for breast and ovarian cancer. Recognizing the value of being proactive with one’s health, Avner founded Bright Pink to empower young women to assess and manage their cancer risk through education and support. Over the years, Bright Pink expanded its mission, striving to reach a broader population to ensure all women understand their breast and ovarian cancer risks.
In 2021, Bright Pink transitioned its model from an operating nonprofit to a nonprofit Venture Philanthropy Fund, becoming the first and only venture philanthropy fund explicitly focused on breast and ovarian health. In 2022, Bright Pink funded its first cohort of Mission Partners, leveraging its experience, assets, and expertise to grow capacity and resources within high-impact efforts led by others.
FORCE was a proud inaugural Bright Pink Mission Partner. With Bright Pink’s support, we’ve grown our Patient Advocate Leaders (PALs) program, training and engaging stakeholders in state and federal advocacy, working to ensure that public policies take the high-risk, hereditary cancer community’s needs into account.
Expansion of the PALs program has enabled us to significantly increase our capacity to influence state laws. In the past two years, FORCE and its volunteer advocates have helped enact new laws in more than a dozen states, increasing access to genetic counseling and testing, eliminating out-of-pocket costs for high-risk “supplemental” cancer screenings and diagnostic imaging, and ensuring access to fertility preservation. We’ve also made progress toward placing guardrails on step-therapy practices and banning genetic discrimination in life, long-term care, and disability insurance.
You can read about these advocacy efforts on our State Policy Initiatives webpage. We’ve also recently launched a webpage dedicated to State Laws that address high-risk breast cancer screenings. This will gradually be expanded to include state laws covering a broad range of hereditary cancer screenings and related services. And that’s just at the state level!
PALs volunteers are also active in advocating for federal policies that improve the landscape for individuals with or at increased risk of hereditary cancers. Visit our Advocacy Action Center to learn more about these efforts.
While the Bright Pink Mission Partner program is coming to an end, its legacy will endure. FORCE will continue its dedication to empowering members of the hereditary cancer community to advocate for better state and federal public policies, improving access to life-saving health interventions.
Interested in becoming a Patient Advocate Leader? Learn more and apply here.