“TOUGH FACTS”: A Program to Help Find a Prostate Cancer Cure and Help Patients Cope with a Major Side Effect of the Disease
Clay Matthews (Green Bay Packers), Wes Welker (New England Patriots) and DeMarcus Ware (Dallas Cowboys) are out to prove that bladder control issues can be tackled in an effort to sideline prostate cancer for good.
Prostate Cancer Facts:
• About one in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.
• This year alone, the American Cancer Society estimates there will be about 242,000 new cases of the disease.
• More than 10 percent of these cases are fatal.
Most of the others will live with common side effects of treatment. Chief among these side effects is loss of bladder control.
Also known as incontinence, bladder control issues affect some 56 million Americans. Often these problems take away one’s sense of normalcy, cause embarrassment and diminish confidence. Now, three pro football stars are doing something about bladder control issues and prostate cancer.
These athletes tried on the new Depend Real Fit briefs to benefit The V Foundation for Cancer Research. “Just for trying them on, we got a chance to change lives,” says Matthews. Together with the Kimberly-Clark Foundation, the brand donated $150,000 on Matthews, Ware and Welker’s behalf to The V Foundation, which has given away more than $3 million in grants to find a cure for prostate cancer.
The V Foundation was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN commentator. It awards 100 percent of direct donations and net proceeds of events directly to cancer research and related programs.
The enclosed PSAs, “Tough Facts,” speak to the experience of the three men and their connection to The Great American Try On, a program designed to help restore the confidence and active lifestyle of people living with bladder control issues. The athletes, filmed on a football field, say they know they play a tough game. But it’s nothing like having to face tough facts about prostate cancer and bladder control issues.
September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and you can help encourage awareness of prostate cancer and bladder control issues by choosing to air these PSAs, which are in :60, :30 and :15 lengths.
