October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, symbolizes a sense of community for individuals with breast cancer, however the experiences of those living with metastatic breast cancer (MBC), the most advanced stage of the disease, is rarely discussed.

MBC, also known as Stage 4 breast cancer or advanced breast cancer, occurs when cancer has spread beyond the breast to other parts of the body.

Thirty percent of people initially diagnosed with earlier stages of breast cancer will eventually develop recurrent or metastatic disease. In the US, an estimated 155,000 people are living with MBC.

MBC frequently involves lifelong treatment, such as chemotherapy, radiation and targeted therapies, to control the spread of the disease and alleviate symptoms.

Through the efforts of breast cancer advocates nationwide and the Metastatic Breast Cancer Network, United States Congress is considering a national proclamation of October 13th as National Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day, a day that has already been observed by many cities and states nationwide.

According to the recent Pfizer-sponsored BRIDGE Survey (Bridging Gaps, Expanding Outreach – Metastatic Breast Cancer Patient Survey) of 950 people living with MBC, nearly seven in 10 respondents desire increased public awareness of MBC.

According to the survey, 53 percent of respondents believe MBC receives too little public attention.

Forty-four percent of respondents reported being afraid to talk openly about their experiences, signaling the need for more public dialogue about MBC.

Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day recognizes the thousands of individuals living with MBC, who want attention brought to this disease with the ultimate goal of having more and better treatments developed. People living with MBC need this disease to be recognized and no longer ignored and misunderstood.

For more information on Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day please visit www.mbcnetwork.org.

For more information on the BRIDGE survey visit www.BRIDGEMBC.com.

Commentary on Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day:

"While there is no cure for metastatic breast cancer, some individuals are able to live longer with the disease. However, metastatic breast cancer remains a clinical challenge in the oncology community. October 13 places emphasis on the disease stressing the need for new, targeted treatments that will help prolong life." - William Gradishar, MD, Professor of Medicine; Director, Breast Medical Oncology, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

"When I was first diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer I couldn't find help and support for my specific needs. This type of roadblock inspired me to become an advocate for women living with the disease. Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day recognizes the thousands of us living with the disease who want their voices heard." - Pamela Lipton, living with metastatic breast cancer

"Raising awareness of metastatic breast cancer, a largely misunderstood disease, will encourage research advances to bring us one step closer to getting treatments to extend life

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council Launch National Campaign to Help Prevent the Spread of the H1N1 Flu Virus

NEW YORK, October 8, 2009 /PRNewswire/ — Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that the Department of Health & Human Services is joining with the Ad Council to launch a series of national television public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to encourage Americans to take steps to protect themselves from the 2009 H1N1 flu virus. The ads are designed specifically to reach children, parents, pregnant women and young adults. A second series of PSAs, aimed at encouraging high-risk populations to get the H1N1 vaccination, is launching in late October.

Included in the public service advertisements being released today are new spots featuring characters from the popular Sesame Street and the winning spots from the recent 2009 Flu Prevention PSA Contest sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services.

The Ad Council is distributing the following PSAs nationwide today and the ads will be supported in airtime donated by television stations nationwide. The spots will also be available at flu.gov, the government's one-stop website for all the latest information on both seasonal and H1N1 flu:

Young Adults: The winning PSA video from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services national 2009 Flu Prevention PSA Contest on YouTube (featuring the "hip hop doc"), along with four additional videos from the contest, will aim to reach those ages 17 to 24. More than 50,000 votes were cast for the contest. The PSAs are available in :30 and :60 lengths and include a Spanish-language spot. Parents and Pregnant Women: Produced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a new series of TV ads featuring Olympic Gold Medalist Jackie Joyner Kersee, singer Marc Anthony and actress Amy Ryan aim to reach parents and pregnant women. The PSA featuring Marc Anthony is also available in Spanish and the ads are in :30 length. Parents and Children: Designed to reach children under the age of five and their parents, Sesame Workshop, the non-profit educational organization behind Sesame Street, produced two new television PSAs. Sesame Street's Elmo and Rosita have a new song teaching children the proper way to sneeze while Elmo and Luis talk to parents about the importance of creating a plan to keep their children home from school if they get sick. These messages build on a PSA Sesame Workshop released with HHS and the Ad Council earlier this year which explained the importance of practicing healthy habits this flu season. The PSAs are available in English and Spanish and are :30 lengths.

"While getting a flu vaccine is the best way for Americans to protect themselves and their families from the flu, right now as we wait for the H1N1 vaccine to get distributed out into local doctors offices and sites across the country, there are critically important things that Americans can be doing right now to keep their friends and family healthy and safe and to prevent the spread of flu," said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "These new prevention PSAs will help us get the word out about what to do about the flu. Fighting the flu is a shared responsibility between all of us and we are so grateful to all those who helped create these wonderful new messages. We are hopeful that Americans will spread these new PSAs virally and use to them help stop the spread of H1N1 and seasonal flu."

The H1N1 flu virus is contagious and spreads person-to-person the same way that seasonal influenza does. The virus has quickly spread worldwide and in June 2009 the World Health Organization declared a global H1N1 flu epidemic.

After a summer of elevated influenza activity levels, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded as many flu cases in September as it does when flu season normally peaks later in the fall and winter.

Children, young adults under 24, pregnant women and adults 25-64 with underlying health conditions, like asthma, are more susceptible to falling ill to the H1N1 flu and are at higher risk for serious medical complications, including hospitalization and death.

To date millions of American people have gotten the H1N1 flu virus and more than 600 have died since the spring from HINI flu-related complications; including children and pregnant women.

The new PSAs focus on the importance of providing Americans with accurate information on the simple steps they can take to help prevent the flu. The PSAs encourage audiences to visit www.flu.gov to get more information on how to stay healthy.

"Since the outbreak of the H1N1 flu, many Americans have expressed concern about how they can protect themselves from being infected," said Peggy Conlon, president and CEO of the Ad Council. "We are proud to continue our longstanding partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services for these critical PSAs that will educate Americans about steps they can take to stay healthy."

The Ad Council has been partnering with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services to develop PSA campaigns that address critical health issues since the 1950s. Their successful collaborations have included public service messages about the polio epidemic, drug abuse and, more recently, obesity prevention.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

The Department of Health and Human Services is the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. HHS is leading the medical response for the federal government for the H1N1 flu pandemic. The department includes more than 300 programs, covering a wide spectrum of activities, including medical and social science research, preventing outbreak of infectious disease, including immunization services, assuring food and drug safety, welfare, and Medicare and Medicaid.

The Advertising Council

The Ad Council (www.adcouncil.org) is a private, non-profit organization that marshals talent from the advertising and communications industries, the facilities of the media, and the resources of the business and non-profit communities to produce, distribute and promote public service campaigns on behalf of non-profit organizations and government agencies in issue areas such as improving the quality of life for children, preventive health, education, community well-being, environmental preservation and strengthening families.

Sesame Workshop

Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit educational organization that revolutionized children's television programming with the landmark Sesame Street. The Workshop produces local Sesame Street programs, seen in over 140 countries, and other acclaimed shows to help bridge the literacy gap including The Electric Company and Pinky Dinky Doo. Beyond television, the Workshop produces content for multiple media platforms on a wide range of issues including literacy, health and military deployment. Initiatives meet specific needs to help young children and families develop critical skills, acquire healthy habits and build emotional strength to prepare them for lifelong learning. Learn more at www.sesameworkshop.org.

Press Contacts:

The Ad Council Ellyn Fisher 212-984-1964 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it HHS Office of Public Health and Science Public Affairs Office 202-205-0143 Sesame Workshop Pam Hacker 212-875-6225 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ...

Making Sense of Diabetes Video Contest Asks "What Does Diabetes Taste, Smell or Sound Like to You?"

Winning videos will premiere around World Diabetes Day, November 14th

Ridgefield, CT, September 24, 2009 /PRNewswire/ — Few people talk openly about having diabetes, so most of us have little understanding of what it feels like to live with diabetes every single day and how it can impact one's every waking moment. That's about to change. In recognition of World Diabetes Day on November 14th, the Making Sense of Diabetes video contest is challenging people living with diabetes to visually reveal its impact on their lives through one of the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch or smell. The contest is sponsored by the Diabetes Hands Foundation, a pioneering advocacy organization in social media, and made possible through support provided by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

"Diabetes affects people's lives in profound and unexpected ways," said Manny Hernandez, founder of the Diabetes Hands Foundation, who has been living with diabetes since 2002. "We smell insulin, savor glucose tablets, feel the poke of devices, react to our doctor's words and see the life ahead of us. Diabetes is complex and we hope this video contest will help people express and share their diabetes experiences with the diabetes community as a whole as well as with people close to them."

To enter the Making Sense of Diabetes contest, anyone with diabetes over the age of 18 is asked to record and submit to MakingSenseofDiabetes.org a video (up to three minutes run time) that demonstrates life with diabetes through one of the five senses. The online video submission should express creativity and originality, be truthful, and convey emotion in a compelling, evocative and personal way.

The contest begins on September 28 and lasts through November 1. Each week will focus on one of the five senses. Three weekly finalists will be chosen based on number of unique views, average rating received, quantity and quality of comments received, creativity and originality and the compelling nature of the video in connection to the sense it is about.

Restrictions and limitations apply. Go to MakingSenseofDiabetes.org for the official rules and regulations, prize information, online voting of weekly winners and contest submission guidelines.

About Diabetes

Approximately 23.61 million Americans and 246 million people worldwide2 have diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is the most common type, accounting for more than 90% of all diabetes cases in the developed world. Each year, more than 200,000 people in North America2 and more than 3.8 million people worldwide die from diabetes and its complications2 - a number which is expected to increase by more than 50 percent over the next decade.3 Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the body either does not properly produce or use the hormone, insulin.2

About Boehringer Ingelheim and Diabetes

In June 2009, Boehringer Ingelheim announced its pipeline of oral antidiabetic compounds, establishing itself in the type 2 diabetes therapeutic area. The Company is investigating compounds in Phase II and Phase III clinical development worldwide.

About The Diabetes Hands Foundation

The Diabetes Hands Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to connecting people touched by diabetes (those with diabetes as well as their loved ones) and raising diabetes awareness.

The roots of DHF go back to 2006, when the idea of creating a social network for a higher purpose was born, later turning into TuDiabetes.com®. EsTuDiabetes.com (a sister community in Spanish) followed, along with the Foundation