Dr. Mehmet Oz, Bill Nye, Don Lemon and More Participated in the Second Annual Blue Jacket Fashion Show Benefitting the Prostate Cancer Foundation

NEW YORK, Feb. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The second annual Blue Jacket Fashion Show was held February 7, 2018 at Pier59 Studios as part of CFDA's New York Men's Fashion Week. In partnership with the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, the Blue Jacket Fashion Show benefitted the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF), founded by philanthropist and financier Michael Milken.

The Blue Jacket Fashion Show brings together the fashion, entertainment, healthcare, and media worlds around a national platform to openly discuss men's cancer issues, with an emphasis on prostate cancer. Coinciding with February's Cancer Prevention Month and New York Men's Fashion Week, the Blue Jacket Fashion Show included designers such as Michael Kors, Joseph Abboud, John Varvatos, Theory, Todd Snyder, Ryan Seacrest, Thom Browne, Geoffrey Beene, Duckie Brown, Greg Norman, Nick Graham, Gustavo Moscoso, Haspel, Stephen Ferber, Bruno Magli, Son Jung Wan and Edwige Pierre - by Josh Washington who used their creative talents to "reinvent" the traditional blue blazer. 

Those walking the runway wearing one-of-a-kind blue jackets included models, actors, and TV personalities.  The evening was hosted by comedian Judy Gold and models included TV personality Dr. Mehmet Oz, science educator and TV personality Bill Nye, CNN Anchor Don Lemon, actor Mario Cantone, NY Jets' Buster Skrine, former model and TV personality Nigel Barker, model Alex Lundqvist, TV personality Dr. Mike Varshavski, actor Dominic Fumusa, actor Eric West, actor Billy Porter, actor Jeremy Carver, TV personality Ryan Serhant, Barney's Creative Director Simon Doonan, hip hop artist Russian Roulette and patient/prostate cancer education advocate Todd Seals.

Prostate cancer is the most prevalent cancer affecting men exclusively, with one in nine diagnosed in the U.S. and 14 million affected worldwide.  Men of African descent are 73% more likely to develop prostate cancer than Caucasian men and twice as likely to die from it.  Men with relatives – father, brother, son – with a history of prostate cancer are also twice as likely to develop the disease.  Prostate cancer continues to take a life of a man every 20 minutes.

"We are so grateful to the Blue Jacket Fashion Show, not only for their generous financial support of the Prostate Cancer Foundation's lifesaving research, but also for putting this issue, which is oftentimes in the shadows of public awareness, front and center in the spotlight, on a runway in NYC during Fashion Week," said Jonathan W. Simons, MD, PCF president and CEO.  Through the efforts of all involved in the Blue Jacket Fashion Show, we are reaching new audiences and saving lives by raising awareness and the funds necessary to defeat this disease."

"We are proud to once again partner with the Blue Jacket Fashion Show, as part of our long-term commitment to raise awareness of prostate cancer symptoms, prevention and treatment options," said Joaquin Duato, Executive Vice President and Worldwide Chairman, Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson. "Janssen, the Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, is proud to be a leader in ushering in a bold new era of treatments in prostate cancer for patients around the world. We also recently launched Cancer.com, an online destination for people impacted by cancer. Our goal is to educate and empower people living with cancer and their loved ones to achieve victories over cancer."

Photos from the 2018 Blue Jacket Fashion Show can be accessed via Getty here and runway shots can be accessed here.

Sponsors of the 2018 Blue Jacket Fashion Show included; The Tree of Life Foundation International, POLISHED by Dr. Lancer, Milbon, Simple Vodka and Saratoga Springs Water. 

For more information about The Blue Jacket Fashion Show, please visit www.pcf.org/bluejacket. Follow the Blue Jacket Fashion Show on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter using the hashtags #BlueJacketFashionShow and #MyBlueJacket.

About The Blue Jacket Initiative:
The Blue Jacket Fashion Show is the kick-off event for The Blue Jacket Initiative founded by Frederick Anderson and Laura Miller (Anderson/Miller).  The Blue Jacket Initiative is a national awareness campaign designed to demystify and create a platform to openly discuss men's cancer issues. Anderson/ Miller is a marketing and promotion agency based in New York City.

About The Prostate Cancer Foundation:
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) is the world's leading philanthropic organization funding and accelerating prostate cancer research. Founded in 1993, PCF has raised more than $740 million and provided funding to more than 2,000 research programs at more than 200 cancer centers and universities. The PCF global research enterprise extends to 19 countries and funds a robust research portfolio. PCF advocates for greater awareness of prostate cancer and more efficient investment of governmental research funds for transformational cancer research. Its efforts have helped produce a 20-fold increase in government funding for prostate cancer. More information about PCF can be found at www.pcf.org

About the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson:
At the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, we are working to create a world without disease. Transforming lives by finding new and better ways to prevent, intercept, treat and cure disease inspires us. We bring together the best minds and pursue the most promising science. We are Janssen. We collaborate with the world for the health of everyone in it. Learn more at www.janssen.com. Follow us at www.twitter.com/JanssenUS.

Media Contacts for The Blue Jacket Initiative:
Jamie Kronfeld/Melanie Blum
Sunshine Sachs
[email protected] 
212-691-2800

Media Contact for Johnson & Johnson:
Kristen Pessalano
INK & ROSES
[email protected]

SOURCE The Blue Jacket Initiative